THE ARDEBIL MOSQUE CARPET
(See page [333])
FAMOUS RUGS
The interest in the very old weavings is not as manifest in the American cities as in many of the European cities, such for instance as Vienna, London, Paris, and Berlin. This is due to several reasons. In the first place, Europe began the importation of Oriental textiles many years before the United States did. In the second place, most of the choice pieces in the United States belong to private individuals instead of to museums, consequently they are seldom, if ever, seen by the public. In the third place, many of the European cities, especially London and Vienna, have given a number of public exhibitions of old rugs, while the recent exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Fine Arts in New York City was the first one ever held in the United States. At this exhibit there were forty-seven pieces of the 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, pieces that would compare favorably with those of any country, all owned by private collectors in the Eastern States.
Great credit is due Dr. Wm. R. Valentiner and his assistants for the promotion and successful management of this exhibition. Let us hope that it is but the beginning of a series of such exhibits which will stimulate a more formal interest and desire to know more about these wonderful products of the Eastern loom.
The age of old rugs can be at least as accurately determined as the age of old paintings and in many cases even more so. According to Dr. Valentiner the so-called Polanaise and Ispahan rugs belong to the 17th century and the Persian animal or hunting rugs belong to the 16th century, while the so-called dragon rugs belong to the 15th century. Many of the rugs from Armenia and the eastern part of Asia Minor date back as far as the 13th and 14th centuries.
Every old rug has its individual character manifest by its designs, colors, weave, and material, all of which are peculiar to the time when it was made or the locality in which it was made, so that it can be located and dated with greater accuracy than would be supposed.
Many early rugs were used for decorative purposes in the pictures of the early Italian and Flemish painters.