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Textile Panel

1700-1750 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Plain weave cotton embroidered with silk in surface darning on the diagonal and running stitch with traces of a woven silk facing. Pieced before being embroidered. Off-white ground with a central indented diamond in light blue containing a slightly darker blue square with 4 heavily stylised floral motifs and a central lozenge-shaped pond with four fish. This indented diamond is linked top and bottom and at the sides to a very indented lozenge containing a cartouche and two composite blossoms and leaves. The ground is off-white, the cartouche is very light blue with darker blue S-shapes and the blossom and the leaves are in pale shades of blue, pink and greenish-brown. The partial indented lozenge at the centre top has details in bright red. At the corners of the central motif are 4 diagonal lozenges in greenish-brown. Each contains a central cartouche and has 4 curved stems and leaves emerging from it. Linked to this is a corner motif in faded red: part of an indented octagon with a central light blue octagon containing 4 curving leaves. Four rigid greenish-brown leaves come from the blue octagon plus 4 blue blossoms. All the motifs in this cover are outlined with black squares.
The border has a blue ground with indented diamonds alternating with indented cartouches. Both motifs contain small stylised floral elements. The centre of the diamond is light blue; the centre of the cartouche is faded red. There are some bright red details in the upper border.
Embroidery threads: 2S silk; off-white, black [outlines], light blue, blue, dark blue, light red, bright red, greenish-brown, yellow.
Facing: traces of a pink silk.
One of the white cotton backing patches through which repairs were worked has part of an embroidered motif in pink silk associated with the Greek Island of Kos. This appears to be a trial or sample, probably worked in the conservation studio in which this cover was treated.

Object details

Category
Object type
Materials and techniques
cotton yarn, silk thread, weaving, embroidering
Brief description
Middle East, Textile; Panel, silk-embroidered cotton, design of medallions and cartouches on cream ground, with red highlights, Azerbaijan or NW Iran, 1700-1750
Physical description
Plain weave cotton embroidered with silk in surface darning on the diagonal and running stitch with traces of a woven silk facing. Pieced before being embroidered. Off-white ground with a central indented diamond in light blue containing a slightly darker blue square with 4 heavily stylised floral motifs and a central lozenge-shaped pond with four fish. This indented diamond is linked top and bottom and at the sides to a very indented lozenge containing a cartouche and two composite blossoms and leaves. The ground is off-white, the cartouche is very light blue with darker blue S-shapes and the blossom and the leaves are in pale shades of blue, pink and greenish-brown. The partial indented lozenge at the centre top has details in bright red. At the corners of the central motif are 4 diagonal lozenges in greenish-brown. Each contains a central cartouche and has 4 curved stems and leaves emerging from it. Linked to this is a corner motif in faded red: part of an indented octagon with a central light blue octagon containing 4 curving leaves. Four rigid greenish-brown leaves come from the blue octagon plus 4 blue blossoms. All the motifs in this cover are outlined with black squares.
The border has a blue ground with indented diamonds alternating with indented cartouches. Both motifs contain small stylised floral elements. The centre of the diamond is light blue; the centre of the cartouche is faded red. There are some bright red details in the upper border.
Embroidery threads: 2S silk; off-white, black [outlines], light blue, blue, dark blue, light red, bright red, greenish-brown, yellow.
Facing: traces of a pink silk.
One of the white cotton backing patches through which repairs were worked has part of an embroidered motif in pink silk associated with the Greek Island of Kos. This appears to be a trial or sample, probably worked in the conservation studio in which this cover was treated.
Dimensions
  • Length: 86.5cm
  • Width: 83.5cm
Style
Production
Azerbaijan
Bibliographic reference
This embroidery belongs to Group 3 as defined by Jennifer Wearden in 'Azerbaijanian Embroideries: A Synthesis of Contrasts' in Hali Issue 59, October 1991 pp.102-111. Group 3 textiles are characterised by surface darning on the diagonal and date from the middle of the 18th century into the early part of the 19th century.
Collection
Accession number
518-1905

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Record createdApril 9, 2008
Record URL
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