Oriental Rugs, Antique and Modern

by W. A. Hawley

No other rugs adhere more strictly to uniformity of colour and design than the Turkoman. And, when it is considered that their prevailing tones and their simple, geometric designs are such as would readily be adopted by people with primitive ideas of ornamentation, it seems probable that they have been copied with only slight modification for a great many centuries, even though more gorgeous and elaborate carpets were woven during the short period when Samarkand was capital of the East. This is probably true, notwithstanding no other country in the world has been subject to more conquests than Turkestan or overrun by so many different races. For here, as we learn by the aid of philology, dwelt the Aryans even before the light of history had come to dispel the mists of antiquity. Two or three thousand years later it was overrun by Cyrus and added to the dominion of the Medes and Persians. In the V Century a. d., Tartar tribes conquered it; and in the following century Turks and Persians divided it between them. Still later it was again overrun by the Arabs, who, sword in hand, converted the vanquished to the creed of Islam. When a few more centuries had rolled away the Mongol hordes of Genghis Khan swept over it; and once again it suffered desolation under the iron hand of Tamerlane, “Scourge of Asia.” But in spite of these waves of conquest and the minor struggles with Persians, Greeks, and Romans, that left their impress on the country, each of the several classes of Turkoman rugs, including even those made two centuries ago, show a remarkable conformity to definite types, however much may be their modification in small detail. Their nap is invariably short; in all of them some shade of dark red is the predominating colour; and in most of them some form of an octagon appears. They are, moreover, the best woven and the most beautiful of the Central Asiatic rugs.

MAP OF TURKESTAN

Though the Turko-Chinese rugs are made in places subject to the influence of Turkomans and far removed from the culture of Chinese, they are unlike the rugs of the former and resemble those of the latter. Not improbably this is because Tamerlane had gathered at Samarkand noted artists and artisans from China, whose influence continued long after his death. And as traditional patterns have been transmitted for centuries, there is little doubt that some of the modern rugs, even though falling far short of the standard of their early prototypes, more closely resemble them than they do any other rugs of Asia. In these pieces Turkoman simplicity of geometric figures is replaced by an elaboration of conventional floral forms and by designs associated with early philosophies; sobriety of colour yields to the bright and even gaudy tones not infrequent in modern textile fabrics.

The Beluchistans, which are regarded as a sub-group of the Central Asiatic rugs, show a closer relationship to the Turkoman rugs than to any others. A few of them have octagonal patterns suggestive of Bokharas, and all have the long webs at the ends and the heavy goat’s hair selvage at the sides peculiar to Afghans and Tekkes. On the other hand, many of the patterns both of field and border resemble Persian workmanship; so that placing these rugs in the same group with the Turkoman and Turko-Chinese rugs, which are not made in an adjoining territory, is slightly arbitrary.

Royal Bokharas.—The best known district in Turkestan is the Khanate of Bokhara, which extends from the offshoots of the lofty Pamir mountains in the east to the desolate sandy plains beyond the Amu Daria, or Oxus river, on the west. Situated in its northern half and near the centre of a fertile valley is its capital, Bokhara, “The Noble.” Though noted for its cruelty, it was once the intellectual centre of Asia, and still possesses nearly a hundred schools and innumerable mosques. These and its bazaars are almost all that remain of the splendour of those days when the great caravans that came from China, India, Persia, and Russia made it one of the great marts of the East.

On account of its commercial importance, the wild tribes of the Kirghiz steppes, the Turkomans from Kizil Kum,[33] the Afghans who dwell north of the Paropamisus range, and the fierce Tekkes and Yomuds from the west, came and bartered their rugs for other necessities. Many of these rugs were taken in caravans, that often numbered several thousand camels, and sold in the Russian market places of Astrakan, Orenburg, or Nijni Novgorod. Since they came from the same place, the term Bokhara was often applied to each of the different classes. Thus we hear of Royal Bokharas, Princess Bokharas, Tekke Bokharas, Yomud Bokharas, and Khiva Bokharas.

Of these five classes the Royal Bokharas, as a rule, not only are the best woven, but are made of the finest material; even the warp of many of them is of soft, silky white wool. The old rugs were made in the city and suburbs of Bokhara, where now only a few pieces are made. Both old and new are found only as sedjadehs. They have two well-known patterns, one of which consists of an octagon surrounding a quartered hexagon. Of these quarters, which are either plain or contain a small triangle of contrasting colour, a pair that are opposite are always white or cream coloured, and the other pair are of some shade of red. Small triangular figures are invariably seen above and below the hexagons, as well as small diamond, oval, or spear-shaped figures at each end of the major axis. In the other pattern the contour of the octagon is rounder; and the hexagon is replaced by an eight-pointed star, at the centre of which is a diamond containing a rectangle or occasionally a Greek cross. Projecting into the four corners from the star are small designs, that careful observation of a large number in many different kinds of rugs shows to be leaf forms. Between the diagonally placed octagons of both these types are stars or diamond-shaped figures, that are usually of the same design regardless of the shape of the octagon. In large rugs the centres of the octagons are generally joined by straight lines of dark blue colour.

It is uncertain why the term Royal has been applied to this class of Bokharas, but it is eminently befitting the old well-woven, velvet-like pieces. A few have small patches of pink or ruby coloured silk; and all have a prevailing tone of red diversified by deep blues and touches of lighter red and ivory, that convey an idea of opulence and dignity worthy of a king.