THE EXAMPLE ILLUSTRATED
Owner's Description.—This type of rug comes from the largest rug-producing centre of Eastern Asia Minor. The specimen shown illustrates the Mosul at its best, as to closeness of weave, length of pile, symmetry of design and richness of coloring.
The superb lustre of the wool, comparable only to a silk plush, and the great softness of the long pile—features which have made famous the rugs from this region—are here conspicuous.
In shape and design also the specimen is typical. The field is composed of diamond-shaped sections outlined in black and decorated with the conventionalized tarantula. By placing these sections diagonally a latticed effect is produced.
The usual border plan of three stripes, two narrow ones separated by a broader, appears here. The narrow stripes are in the familiar flower-and-vine design, the broad stripe in a formal arrangement of rosette and hour-glass, all conforming to the geometrical and rectangular lines of Turkish design.
The color scheme of the piece is remarkable for its harmony. The dominant color is wine, introduced in many beautifully blended shades, and relieved with correspondingly soft tones of old blue and green, the whole illuminated with well-arranged bands of white.
SHIRVAN RUG
Size 7'3" × 4'
FROM THE COLLECTION OF THE AUTHOR
Knot: Ghiordes. Seven to the inch horizontally and nine vertically, making sixty-three to the square inch.
A splendid specimen of Caucasian weaving, being a perfect gem for color, quality and sheen, although in design it differs somewhat from the ordinary Shirvan.
The field is covered with octagons each of which contains an eight-petaled flower, no two of which are alike in color. Upon close inspection it is noticeable that the ends of some of the petals are finished in a color entirely different from that of the rest of the petal.