liiiiii HI '•it I i m LIBRAKY STATE TCACHEM OCX-LEO*. SANTA BARBARA. CALIFORNIA z.% /% % * 8888e©©@©S888S8S©SS®S®®8®®®S®®®®®®®S®S®®©® « . ■ S8 ® © © © © i © THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK BY MARY CHURCHILL RIPLEY WITH ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY- FOUR ILLUSTRATIONS V 'o k V 1 V* V5i*i -*" - _'- _i^« ^*- •_ .x/i ^M *ff% M jsol* . "cCt* **¥*$*f&*#; Mm? ♦ * / £ If: j Txl/V A RUG-PLATE I T E N TS — T E M PL E S — T O M B S 3 tents that even now are used by the nomads, or wan- dering tribes, all over Asia, and much that will mate- ENAMELLED FACE OF TOMB (KELEKIAN COLLECTION). rially assist the student is being gathered from people who have not yet sacrificed tribal traditions. 4 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK The ornamentation on the tents of primitive peo- ple, and upon their tabernacles and tombs, was in early times either painted and embroidered on canvas, or engraved on stone and wood. Such methods of decoration antedated weaving in pattern. When the effort was first made to copy in warp and woof the patterns which had been formerly embroidered upon a smooth, woven surface, the weavers found it impossi- ble to work in curves because of the limitations of the art. This forced the geometric in design, and we claim for the weaver's art the origin of that style of ornament. The very beautiful and highly developed geometric designs that soon evolved from the weav- er's dexterity and skill were in turn copied in paint- ing and in mosaic work in stone, so that later weavers found inspiration and guidance by studying the rock- cut tombs and sculptures of the Orient. These stone carvings are invaluable to us in the study of the art of the ancients, and each year places us under more of a debt to antiquarians and eminent scholars whose scientific skill and indefatigable perseverance and patience discover and interpret the relics of the past. By way of example, let us trace one simple pattern found as a border design in the very early weavings of people near the shores of the Mediterranean, the Black, and the Caspian seas. The angular hook pat- tern which is apparent in all Western Asian designs, is traced by some to a wave or water motif and by others to a more involved ancestry; the zig-zag in dif- ferent places has different meanings, but it is generally claimed as a water motif; while the space which sepa- rates the lower from the upper ornament, though it DESIGNS COPIED IN RUGS FROM DECORATION ON THE INSIDE OF CANVAS TENTS TENTS-TEMPLES-TOMBS BORDER TAKEN FROM ANTIQUE RUG. appears with slight variations in numberless old pat- terns, is usually marked off by simple diagonal lines at regular intervals. The oft recurrence of these three motifs of ornament in certain tribal patterns seem- ing to point to some remote origin, a search among museum treasures brought to light various rock sculptures with __ designs in relief of old galleys and craft of various "O sorts, and tracings ^ Jgg from these give mute evidence of the right of the student to draw h i s own deduc- tions. A consideration of the develop- ment i n decora- tion, from that which could be freely applied rock-cut illustration of with a brush or ancient " galley." 6 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK easily cut in a soft substance to that which is nec- essarily restricted in expression because of the ina- daptability of the materials used, reveals the fact that all primitive peoples have found the same difficulties, and that consequently a similarity in early art is to be expected. In primitive geometric ornament straight lines are used, and patterns are made to assume angular forms giving great vitality. As obstacles are overcome, however, straight lines give place to curves, the concessions of the weaver being everywhere ap- parent, and we note a decline in the vigour of the designs, which may quite easily mark the age and periods of development in the art of any special locality. In certain parts of the Orient geometric design has developed features that are different from those most often found in other places. In one region the star, in another the equilateral triangle, and in still another the octagon, furnish motifs that receive novel and interesting treatment in the various localities where they have been most fully developed. In the early history of the weaver's art, these main features were distinct, and serve to guide our judgment accurately in making decisions. There was fidelity in pattern to the symbol from which it evolved, and every effort was made to hand down from one generation to an- other that which had been long honoured and revered. The poetry of rug-making has been turned into prose by the modern European manufacturer, who orders in the East, according to his own fancy or knowledge about the market, that which he thinks TE N TS — T E M PL E S-T OM BS 7 will sell best. There was a time when to finish a rug in the home of a native weaver was to accomplish something worthy of recognition. The father of the fair weaver would go about and say : " Oh, come ! My girl ! She has made a rug ! Come, come and see the rug my daughter she has made ! " And then the neighbours would go to see the rug, and would con- DESIGN, FOUND IN TEXTILES, TAKEN FROM THE "KAABA " AT MECCA. gratulate the father of a girl who could weave so fine a rug, one that she might use as a dowry-rug. No money value could be placed on such a production as that. By the rugs thus woven young girls were some- times judged by their suitors, and a rug showing 8 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK patience, skill, and fidelity to tribal distinction was apt to mean that the weaver would make a good wife. The study of Oriental rugs will reveal much that can be discovered in no other way. The needs of human beings are alike the world over, and the tent, the temple, and the tomb draw upon the inven- tive genius of all peoples alike, — a place in which to live, which shall be as beautiful as our knowledge and means will admit ; a place in which to worship, which shall be adorned with the choicest manifesta- tions of thought and art ; and a quiet spot some- where to bear evidence that we are not forgotten. In the Orient the rug has always served all these purposes, — it adorns the home, makes beautiful the temple, and is thrown upon the tomb in loving mem- ory. It is told of Robert Louis Stevenson that he so endeared himself to the natives of Samoa, that after his death they crept silently to the spot where he was resting, and drew over him one of their own native rugs, as the most absolute token of their regard. BUG-PLATE II KHILIM RUG MUG-PLATE II KHILIM RUG Size: 5.0 X 3.6 Oriental Expert's Description OlXTEENTH-century Khilim rug made by the ** descendants of the Byzantines. " H. E. Benguiat. Author's Description The tree of life is here shoivn in archaic design. Birds facing each other stand upon the branches from which the leafage or fruit hangs. This motif, though very crude, is found repeated in the border stripe surrounding the field. RUG-PLATE 11 CHAPTER II SHAPES AND USES OF ORIENTAL RUGS As our study of Oriental rugs is to be entirely from an Occidental standpoint, we shall first group them together without regard to their native uses and purposes. We have found that certain shapes and sizes are generally adhered to by Oriental weavers, and we have accommodated in our modern homes, as best we could, that which most readily would suit our special needs. Oblong rugs have served us fairly well as hearth-rugs and as coverings for divans, and to throw about small rooms over a " filling " of plain colour, or upon bare floors. For room centres we have utilised the Afghan, Khiva, and Bokhara rugs, which came to us in larger sizes at first than other makes were apt to, and though always expensive their value has been esteemed and considered com- mensurate. Long and narrow rugs we found suitable for halls and stairs, because until of late years our halls and stairways have been long and narrow, and have not been developed artistically. Smooth-faced rugs, without pile (Khilim) have long been used as portieres and table-covers, and for cushions we have utilised small saddle-bags and Anatolian mats. Following closely upon our adaptation of things Oriental, there came to us carpets manufactured on io THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK purpose for European and American homes, and it was then that those who could afford to do so ordered for their large rooms and salons "Turkish," or "Tur- key carpets " of large and heavy make. At the same time students were beginning to investigate the man- ners and customs of the Orie'nt, and to ascertain the exact purpose for which textile fabrics were designed and made, so that at the present time we are apt to hear names more or less correctly applied, for in the Orient each need of life has been supplied with its appropriate rug, and isolated facts concerning Eastern habits reveal what many of these needs are. However profane the use made of the Oriental rug, it was originally a thing of sentiment and should be studied as such. With unsandalled feet the ancients stepped upon it, and the poetry and religion of de- vout souls have mingled with the practical detail of daily life to make smooth its surface of silk and wool. THE DOWRY-RUG, THE WEDDING-RUG, THE HOST-RUG, THE RUG OF HOSPITALITY AND THE HEARTH-RUG, — each one of these was woven according to time- honoured rules, and in shapes and sizes following styles. HUNTING-RUGS, SADDLE-BAGS, DESERT- AND TENT-RUGS, RUGS FOR HANGINGS AND FOR DIVANS, — [EWISH KMllki ill»l,K\ (>N I.1XKN USES OF ORIENTAL RUGS ii of these many were adorned with significant designs which indicate their uses. THRONE-RUGS, MOSQUE-RUGS, PALLS and PRAYER-RUGS, — a bale containing a single specimen of each of these varieties would indeed be of inestimable value, and why should we not be more careful in our selection of these art objects, establishing in our minds some definite idea in making our collections ? The dowry-rug is not always woven, but is made of material heavily embroidered or quilted in artistic design. It is the last possession that an Oriental woman will sell, and for this reason dowry-rugs are not commonly shown as such in-this country. Small tap- estry rugs, such as are known as Kiz-Khilim (Ghilcevi), or "girl-rugs" are worked by girls, and are sometimes very beautiful. Held to the light, a tracing in pat- tern of openwork is sometimes evident, and in very early weaving this pattern was intentional, and often very intricate, not always bearing relation to the pat- tern in coloured wools worked with wool upon the warp. This, a double task, was set the weaver, and great skill marked many of these exquisite creations. Sometimes beads, bits of cotton cloth, or small tufts of wool, were attached to the warp threads of these Kiz-Kkilims as talismans or to keep off the evil eye. As the dread of this malevolent influence exists universally throughout the Orient, it soon becomes apparent to the student that many things that have worked their way into ornament may be traced to the 12 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK effort of the individual to appease some antagonistic power and prevent evil consequences. The charms that have proved efficacious vary, and in the most ex- treme cases the evil force is portrayed in animal form, and the charm that allures the animal is adopted as a talisman. Mongolian adherence to the effort to keep off the evil eye has very decidedly marked the orna- ment of eastern Asia, and we find, even in Persian weavings, patterns that show their origin in talismans, so that it has seemed wise to make a special class for such ornament. Wedding-rugs are never seen in large sizes, but all the originality and skill of the weaver was dedicated to the task of making such a possession beautiful. In them tribal designs of significance and purity were preserved, and they were* used to cover the couch and to screen the apartments in the home. • The new tent roof stretched, the hearth-rug finds its place. Hearth-rugs may be distinguished by the shape of the field, which is pointed at both ends. To stand upon another's hearth-rug was to seek and find sanctuary. As rugs of hospitality they are indeed well named, for we can scarce form an idea of what it meant to those whose hands were against every man, to find a shelter from storm and from attack. The vow of the Moslem was not lightly taken, but when it was, it was protected by the faith which uttered the creed : "We are believers in the book which saith, Fulfil your cove- nants, if ye covenant ; For God is witness ! break no word with men which God hath heard ; and surely He hears all ! " — Koran, chap, xvi ; Sir Edwin Arnold, Pearls of the Faith. JEWISH CEREMONIAL LINENS USES OF ORIENTAL RUGS 13 In fact, of other than the Mohammedans among the peoples of the Orient the same may be said in regard to the sanctity of hospitality. The host, whether in his home or upon his travels, was always well equip- ped with textiles worked in designs that indicated their uses. Host-rugs for the home, showing, either in pattern or in weave divisions, where guests should sit and where the master of the house or tent should remain ; saddle-bags and " woven trappings," hunting- rugs, — and coverings of all sorts, are among the choicest weavings to be found, and antique specimens are of great beauty. / Jrbr0nC= 5 1RUCl8 Throne-rugs and mosque-rugs are ._ an6 __ naturally the most costly and beau- /iDosque^lRuos .., , c ,, . , titul 01 all eastern weavings, and they demand entirely different consideration from the rugs that are made and used by nomad tribes and villagers. They have ordinarily been made under royal patronage and careful surveillance, and the weavers have been protected in every way. It has been the good fortune of wealthy Orientals to defy the cold and unattractive winter time by having woven for them rare and marvellous carpets, which as nearly as possible represent both the flower-strewn fields and the gardens in which summer days and nights were spent. Cool, splashing, and gurgling water flowing in and about the beds of flowers in the summer gardens furnished water motifs quite unlike those that are so called in the ornament of dwellers on the sea-coast, where waves instead of fountains and streams inspired brains and fingers. The coloured tiles over which the water trickled gave an iridescence i 4 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK to the transmitted hues, and lent to the ornament derived from such natural conditions a charm that we feel in studying the reproduction in wool of these subtle themes. Skilled workers, engaged at the pre- sent time in the palaces and homes of dignitaries, are copying with precision the rare carpets of past centur- ies, in which are treasured up the poetry and soul of the ages. The gardens of the Orient have marked the art of its weavers in two entirely distinct ways. The style most prized, if there be any definite choice, is that which in a naturalistic way portrays minute flower forms. In palace carpets of the sixteenth century such decoration reached its highest state of perfection, and rare copies of famous " palace-rugs " are from time to time shown as museum treasures. These are finished with narrow borders, which serve no purpose of decoration, but merely bound the flower-strewn field. The other style of carpet inspired by the garden is that in which the divisions of the rug, with its borders, follow the general plans observed in Oriental pleasure-grounds. In some cases even the crenella- tions that finish the walls which surround the gardens furnish motifs of ornament for the outside or limiting border. The ridges that separate the flower-beds in the natural gardens are sometimes covered with vines, and these are faithfully copied in the small dividing borders between the broad ones, which are also ornamented with flower forms. Terraces, fountains, trees, and fruit are all faithfully reproduced, and are treated by some weavers conventionally, and by others in a naturalistic way. USES OF ORIENTAL RUGS 15 The rose-gardens of Persia have especially appealed to the luxury-loving natives of the land loved by the poets, for, as in all countries where desert lands abound, the oases are highly prized, and wherever irrigation is necessary in order to make the desert blossom, verdure depending upon human effort, man endeavours to make for himself within prescribed limits a perfect baharistan, or paradise. These earthly pleasure-grounds furnish to the imagination models for abodes in bliss which await those loved by the gods, who, while resting here on earth, sing of joys to come : " Lo, we have told you of the golden garden Kept for the faithful, where the soil is still Wheat-flour and musk, and camphire and fruits harden To what delicious savour each man will. " Upon the Tooba tree, which bends its clusters To him that doth desire, bearing all meat ; And of the sparkling fountains which out-lustre Diamonds and emeralds running clear and sweet. " Dwelling in marvellous pavilions, builded Of hollow pearls wherethrough a great light shines, Cooled by soft breezes, and by glad suns gilded, On the green pillows where the blest reclines. "A rich reward it shall be, a full payment For life's brief trials and sad virtue's stress, When friends with friends, clad all in festal raiment, Share in deep Heaven the angel's happiness." Sir Edwin Arnold, — Pearls of the Faith. In old Mongolian devices we find, in the outer border of garden-rugs, mountain and cloud designs 16 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK indicating an extended view from the place of retreat. These once faithfully portrayed natural objects have very few of them been preserved with their original meaning in modern ornament, but like scattered petals they are strewn upon the solid- coloured fields of modern rugs in highly convention- alised forms, as roses, tulips, pinks, and lilies. Like throne-rugs and palace-rugs, mosque-rugs are among the most magnificent fruits of the loom, and as votive offerings they are made costly beyond descrip- tion. Floral symbolism may be traced in many of the designs used in these gift rugs, and panel decoration of the most ornate character abounds which follows architectural types and is enriched by significant motifs taken from existing ornament. (&Y&ve~ ^ n ru £ s *- na t are used as palls and grave-car- pets we find the tree in ornament, as well 1KUQS as many special emblems of mourning that have both national and personal meaning. These fab- rics are made in all grades, needed as they are by high and low alike, and, according to the faith of the weaver, symbols of immortality adorn them. Many of the same general designs that are found upon grave carpets decorate antique prayer-rugs, and the study of the "prayer-rug" is of^paramount interest. When the call was first sounded in the seventh century — * " Turn whereso'er ye be, to Mecca's stone, Thitherwards turn ! — the necessity was forced upon the followers of the prophet to make for themselves some sacred thing upon which to kneel. Tunics and outer garments or USES OF ORIENTAL RUGS 17 A A. Kcvhxak braver. uicJxe J' ^ //Mka.^ VARIOUS FORMS OF THE PRAYER-NICHE IN RUGS 18 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK some woven fabrics were used, until thought seized the inventive genius of the weavers, and its applica- _, __. tion to warp and woof produced the Ubefl}raget> F ~, fi . , /\, ^^ prayer-rug. 1 he held ot the rug was IKUy . j , ... pointed at one end, which was sup- posed to be placed during the prayer so that the wor- shipper should face toward Mecca, that hallowed and sacred spot where King Solomon, more than fifteen hundred years before the birth of Mohammed, is supposed to have gone on a pilgrimage, transported hither and thither upon his fabulous green carpet, which at his bidding arose from the place where it was stretched, and floated through space, covered with a canopy of flying birds. The necessity of facing Mecca has given distinctive patterns not only to the main outlines in the designs of prayer-rugs, but, in detail, many of the articles used by the pious Mohammedan are sometimes worked into the fabric. A compass was necessarily carried to determine location, so that the rug might point in the right direction. A comb to keep in order the beard, and beads to assist in prayer, were needful accessories, and accordingly were used in decoration. The Moslem rosary consists of ninety-nine beads, each one designating one of the " ninety-nine beauti- ful names of Allah." These various articles are to be generally found in the pointed end of the prayer-rug if they are used at all in designs. This pointed end is called the " niche," and it is supposed to imitate the form of the " Mihrab," or niche, in the temple at Mecca, where the Koran is kept. " With strands of vow and shreds of prayer" have THE MYTHICAL JOURNEY OF SOLOMON TO PARADISE, TRANS- PORTED THITHER ON THE GREEN CARPET DESCRIBED ON PAGE j 7 li UG-PLA TE III K ASH AN SILK RUG RUG-FLATE III K ASH AN SILK RUG Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Oriental Expert's Description " *-i HIS rug shows nomadic handling of de- -*■ sign and dyes." S. S. Costikyan. Author's Description The designs in this hunting-rug are crude and uninteresting, but the colours are so fine that, as a fabric, it has great charm. Its age is plainly written at the top of the rug, showing that it is an early nineteenth-century production. The selvage has been replaced by a new one, and fringe has been added to that of the origi- nal rug. Upon a background of clear primary red, softened by age and atmospheric influences, rests a diamond-shaped medallion of deep blue. The Persian coat of arms (the sun rising behind a lion holding a yataghan) appears above and below the central panel. RUG-PLATE 111 USES OF ORIENTAL RUGS 19 been woven, by and for the faithful, rugs which not only bear evidence of Arabian and Turkish ideas of the needs of time, and the belief in immortality, but designs that show that the creed of Islam found devo- tees in central and eastern Asia, and even among the dwellers in far Cathay. Special emblems of local significance were worked into prayer-rugs ; and Zoroas- trian cypress-trees, Indian lotus-flowers, and Chinese Buddhistic symbols testify to the mingling of beliefs. Although prayer-rugs are now made for commercial purposes, and vast numbers of them are sold, artistic specimens always command our interest in no ordinary way, for there is always the possibility that upon their surfaces some true believers in all that is good in the teachings of Mohammed have bowed toward Mecca in response to the call to prayer: " Allahu ! La Ilah, illahu ! " In poetic fancy this thought has been given expres- sion in the verses of Miss Anne Reeve Aldrich: "MY PERSIAN PRAYER-RUG. " Made smooth, some centuries ago, By praying eastern devotees , Blurred by those dusky naked feet, And somewhat worn by shuffling knees, In Ispahan. " It lies upon my modern floor, And no one prays there any more, It never felt the worldly tread Of smart bottines high and red, In Ispahan. 2o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK " And no one prays there now, I said? Ah, well that was a hasty word. Once, with my face upon its woof, A fiercer prayer is never heard In Ispahan. " But still I live, who prayed that night That death might come ere came the light. Did any soul in black despair Breathe, crouching here, that reckless prayer In Ispahan ? " Perhaps. I trust that heaven lent A kinder ear to him than me, If some brown sufferer, weeping, begged To have his wretched soul set free In Ispahan. " I fancy I shall like to meet The dead who prayed here, and whose feet Wore that rich carpet dim and frayed. Peace to your souls, O friends, who prayed In Ispahan." CHAPTER III BIBLIOGRAPHY UNTIL within a century the casual student of things Oriental has been apt to look upon Asia chiefly as " Bible country," and through a glass of semi-reli- gious colouring has endeavoured to make the things of long ago explain the life of the intervening cen- turies. Without doubt the tent of Abraham was similar to those which have been used ever since by nomad tribes, and the curtains before it probably resembled the kliilims we know so well to-day, but the modern student has added to his research by con- sidering both Christian and Mohammedan ascendency and would not look upon the art product of to-day as revealing in absolute purity the thought life of the Abrahamic period. More or less, to be sure, racial conditions and methods have obtained in spite of changes brought about by the Cross and the Crescent. The ages were not dark ages, in the Orient, that are chronicled as such in the history of Christian Europe, and the influences from the Orient were felt through the Saracenic conquest, and were noticeable in Euro- pean art antedating the Crusades. The Christian Dark Ages were explained by writers of Sunday-school text-books, as without light, so far as the development of Christian truth was concerned, 22 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK and all but the bare outlines of Mohammedan su- premacy was eliminated. It must be borne in mind that we are speaking of the way historical facts have influenced art, and are not making an argument for or against methods of dealing with religious truths. Formerly, missionaries with eager desire to establish the Cross in foreign lands, wrote in their books of travel more about converts made than about manners and customs. " Idols " were spoken of indiscrimi- nately as such, without according any individuality to either the man or the animal worshipped. Not until religious fervour was accompanied with scholarly research did we receive much valuable assistance from the books of travel written by missionaries. When English interests in the far East developed, the government sent out scholars whose reports were hailed with delight by waiting students, and the monographs published, and the reports in the Asiatic Society journals, were among the earliest literature that we could claim in the bibliography of the rug. When Mr. Vincent Robinson wrote his earliest papers for the " Journal of the Society of Arts," and the dis- tinguished secretaries of various museums and socie- ties expressed to the world their convictions in regard to objects examined, we began to feel that we had something definite and tangible to take hold of, and we sought for encyclopaedic information which might enlighten us in regard to products and their uses in manufacture. From ethnological and consular re- ports we were able to form a somewhat definite idea of the rug-producing countries and their physical aspects; of highland and lowland, towns and villages, MUG-PLATE IV IRAN RUG MUG-PLATE IV IRAN RUG Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Author's Description c 7 HIS rare old Persian hunting-rug teas -*- woven in picture form to serve as a wall decoration. So skilfully has the weaver used his colours that it is scarcely possible to distin- guish floral from animal forms outside the cen- tral panel in the field of the rug, as a blush is diffused over all, which mingles the varying shades, and tones them in such a way that the whole effect is of lustre. The seven border stripes are finely woven, and fully four hundred knots are tied in each square inch of the surface. The rug claims two hundred years' 1 existence, which is not too great an age for its beauty of weave to warrant. -.* \y> j-- ~_ -■ ■ RUG-PLATE IV BIBLIOGRAPHY 23 and the manners and customs all through the caravan- traversed East. Neither railroads nor cameras aided the early writers, and yet much was described by them that interpreted Eastern affairs better than aught else ever has; for, without intention of proving a point, certain things were mentioned, or illustrated, by laborious process, which did reveal and explain to those whose eyes were ready to read, and whose intel- ligence was quickened to respond. After this followed more popular writings, sent to both Europe and America by their respective minis- ters to Asia, and by army and navy officers who de- scribed in the most graphic manner things that really occurred, thus adding fuel to already kindled imagi- nations. Scrap-books containing all that could be secured from periodicals of the time are among the most cherished possessions of those whose interest in the Orient has now covered nearly half a century of time. Following the scarcely obtainable accounts of present-day conditions in Asia, came the reports from exploration and archaeological societies, which, with overwhelming conviction, indorsed the speculations of our foremost thinkers ; and in the unearthed testi- mony, cut into stone which had been buried for centuries, were found mute answers to questions that had been asked by antiquarians throughout the years. To-day we stand at the result of all the ages. We have not only all that has been written of a specula-' tive nature in regard to Oriental rugs, but all the facts that could be gathered for our use by travellers and writers ; and still we may be confounded by the sim- 24 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK plest specimen of the weaver's art in our possession unless we have ourselves some method which shall serve as a key with which we may unlock the mys- teries of Eastern thought which it represents. RUG-PLATE V KULAH PRAYER-RUG HUG-PLATE V KULAH PRAYER-RUG Oriental Expert's Description " <•/ HIS rug ivas originally brought from the -*- island of Rhodes, a very rare and perfect specimen, old and original. 1 ' 1 Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. Author's Description The allotment of border stripes is after a dif- ferent order in this old Rhodian rug from that folloived in either Ghiordez, Kulah, or Melhaz. To the narroiv stripes the Kulah weavers look for suggestion, ivhile in the squared design of the main border the palmate flower with three buds shoics one of the earliest patterns from xvhich the more ornate forms of Asia Minor iceave were evolved. The motifs, indiscrimi- nately arranged on the narroiv stripe, indirect- ly copy the old Rhodian motif sometimes called " sun- snakes," while the floral festoons in the second and sixth stripes point to a late develop- ment of the meander. The entire field of the rug is filled with a geometric pi ant- form grow- ing from a jardinier, while in the border bound- ing the field appears a most beautiful variant of the water motif. RUG-PLATE V CHAPTER IV CHART SYSTEM OF STUDY The Oriental rug in our Occidental home! How may we study it ? In offering the chart, on page 26, which, as a system of mnemonics, will serve to outline for us the informa- tion we should possess about each individual specimen we examine, there is no claim made to exhaustive knowledge, but rather an intimation that by adopting this simple method each student may secure for him- self that which will represent his own research, and which may in a way be unlike all else that has gone before it, — a weaving or fabrication of his own brain, with warp of fact and woof of fancy that may reveal some of the great truths and mysteries of Oriental lore. Like the ancients who marked off a definite space in which to weave " a product of time in the field of eternity," we may claim it our right to im- press our individuality upon the present by carefully formulating definite opinions in regard to the essen- tial points in rug-study. The bare outlines of the chart represent the laying out of the scheme. We devote the middle panel on the field of the rug-chart to the statement of our belief that the gov- erning and central thought in all artistic weaving •IliH / t i f i .C^ .*■* t CHART SYSTEM OF STUDY 27 produced by early peoples in strict adherence to tra- dition is that the Oriental rug is a thing of sentiment, and should be studied as such. It has always been the natural tendency for human beings to adorn their tents, temples, and tombs with the choicest work of their hands. Applying this thought to any antique rug, we may discover certain features that appeal to us as verifying this assertion, and again and again we may try to work our way into the thought behind the evidence of it, until gradually we begin to detect the spirit of modern commercialism when it exists, or to note the presence of that very sentiment for which we have learned to look. Questions quickly follow our initial interest and investigation, and we begin to wonder with what ma- terials the ancients worked, and how they were pre- pared. Such facts, as we gather them, let us group in the column to the right in the rug-chart, adding in- formation, from time to time, as our discoveries con- tinue. In response to further questioning we devote column two to the consideration of colours and their value. Thus in sequence we pass over to the left, and in column three the styles of weaving and of looms are enumerated, while in column four we en- deavour to classify the various paraphernalia, finally reaching the ultimate and significant assertion that the knot carpet marks the highest development of the weaver's art. All the information we may glean in thus broadly considering the subject may be applied to weaving at large ; but as our purpose is to study Oriental rugs, we may divide the lower part of the rug-chart into five 28 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK sections, with more or less fidelity to the position in Asia, east and west, of the various rug-producing countries, bearing in mind that the plan of study is to meet the requirements of those who wish to secure the simplest and briefest method, and at the same time so to outline the subject that it may accommo- date their needs as they advance, excluding from their minds for the present all preconceived notions. Progressing in our application of broad consider- ations, we note that primitive people might have arrived at a state of mere technical perfection along the lines indicated, so that in answer to their needs textiles might have been simply but perfectly woven, serving as canopy for shelter, and covering for body. Then followed evidence of thought, however, and the work of the hands of men was crowned with the thought of their brains. Thus we approach the result which in its fullest development we call ornament. In the upper corners of the chart we group the various methods of dividing and subdividing this branch of the subject, coming face to face with the realization that there must have been meaning in most of the patterns which have become historic, else they would not have been so oft repeated ; and we turn for further light on the question to the star in the upper part of the field of the chart, which indi- cates the various religions that have most considerably influenced art. We find that this star is placed in the part of the design which, we shall discover as we proceed, indicates that the rug is a prayer-rug, and, as such, is distinguished from others by the shape of the upper end of the field. This end is always arched or CAUCASIAN RUG SHOWING KAZAN. DAGHESTAN AND SHIRVAN FEATURES rHIS illustration is given, to show thf- lack of fidelity to trctdition and the mongrel nature of the designs in the vast majority of modern fabrics with which the markets of to- day are crowded. ¥, E '. • \ in mo- g from their ider- I •■ jjt have .tUSj "A v^viiow^ &$$ m j alon S YJaTAWW, (\ ■ ds I \'» the : tin ~ ! oil i ol r ~ . : l w : .;■■ -lie this ith the ting in ric, .and ; to the star ibly iced in 3 we as CHART SYSTEM OF STUDY 29 pointed, and differently ornamented from any other part of the rug. Over the star appears the comb, one- of the emblems of the Mohammedan faith, and immediately above the comb is drawn in triangular form the spot upon which the pious Mohammedan may place, if he will, his bit of sacred earth from Mecca, upon which his forehead may rest as he kneels in prayer. With these symbols of Moslem faith we mingle those of the other great religions, and sur- round the prayer niche with as many or as few of them as our knowledge will permit, never placing any there — even though the space remains empty — that we are not personally convinced are symbols standing for absolute thought. Hovering over and among these expressions of thought, we leave space for the consideration of the forces that made from these scattered motifs of orna- ment the great styles which may be recognised wher- ever found, whether near or far, from their places of origin. Pilgrimages and wars have carried the evi- dences of man's thought from one remote place to another, and as we learn the various world-styles we will name the threads of fringe which extend beyond the upper surface of our imaginary rug, using only such names as we are willing to indorse, for we are to be the individual weavers of facts gleaned by ourselves. It remains for us at our leisure to consider again the five divisions of rug country, and with open atlas and an outline map we may make our own discover- ies, holding to our determination to confine ourselves to independent research, arranging both encyclopaedic 3o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK and historic information in as original a way as is possible. As we learn to know various weaves, and as we examine great numbers of actual rugs, we may begin to subdivide and name each thread of the fringe extending beyond the lower surface of the rug chart. Our attempt should be to study types as nearly as possible, discarding, until we are more familiar with main features, every object that is com- plex in pattern and which overtaxes our limited powers. In museums and in illustrated books of travel we shall find pictorial representations of early thought, grouped together without any intention of proving our theories, which may, if studied aright, help us to formulate our ideas and establish our standards. The plan thus outlined is a simple one, and, after all, is only a list of questions so arranged that they will readily suggest themselves as a formula of procedure when we wish to discover the truth concerning any Oriental rug brought to our notice. But because the questions do follow one another consecutively, they force themselves upon us, and train our perception so that we eventually take in at a glance the whole make-up of the specimen examined. a 13, w u w <& o CHAPTER V MATERIALS PRIMITIVE people, in whatever part of r the world they have dwelt, have used the same natural materials in rug-manufac- ture, vegetable always antedating animal products, and the list may be framed as follows : Leaves Fibre Jute Hair Reeds Hemp Cotton Fur Grasses Flax Wool Silk These materials, in the hands of the sav- age races, have been similarly treated. Mat- ting together leaves, hair, fur, etc. ; weaving reeds and grasses ; and tying twigs and branches, have given three methods of mak- ing rude floor-coverings. Evolving from these three simple, natural methods we have felt rues, used in the Orient to cover the floors before spreading down coarser rugs ; weaving of all sorts where woof is run through warp to make fabric ; and, from the tying together so as to hold in place one material by some other, we trace that which, in its fullest development, we call lace. 1*S \K ■y" MATERIALS 32 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK (i) Primitive people, noting the matting of leaves in the forest, have copied the process in their art. (2) Noting the interlacing of fibres, etc., they have again copied the same in art. (3) Noting the web of the spider (circles held to- gether by finest tracery), they have rivalled it in per- fection of weaving. Thus we see that to individuals alike, wherever they may have dwelt, have come hints and revela- tions from the great world of Nature. The Oriental weaver doubtless made his reed mat before he wove his woollen rug. His first woven rug, like the first textiles of all people alike, was without doubt, like the kliilims of to-day and the Navajo blankets we so highly esteem. It was a later thought to add ornament of any kind, making a relief surface, whether the decoration be applied with feathers, shells, or knots. The materials used for the fully developed art are silk, the wool of sheep, and the hair of goats and camels. It makes all the difference in the world how these materials are treated. Wool may be lustrous or dull according to whether or not it is carefully pre- pared. When shorn from living sheep in good condi- tion it is apt to have life and a quality which lends sheen to the spun wool. If the wool is taken from a dead sheep or fleece, it may lack lustre and vitality, — or at least so says tradition. Camels from cold climates shed their hair when they reach warmer places, and this hair is often utilized, but does not give as good results as when deliberately removed from the ani- mal. Pasturage influences the nature of the mate- GREEK. CHURCH KMHROlDERY MATERIALS 33 rials animals yield to rug-makers, and in studying tribal wanderings we find that direction is determined by the nature of the country. High altitudes produce very different wool and hair from low levels, and all these things must be considered by the student. The general name for all the rugs with tufted sur- faces or nap, made in the Orient, is " knot carpet," the effect being produced by tying knots of coloured wool, hair, or silk upon one or more of the warp threads, and then fixing all in place by bringing down with a comb several threads of the woof. Here is where a small amount of knowledge is of immense value to the collector. We hold a rug in our hands, — an object to study. We notice how many knots are tied in each square inch of surface, — thirty, forty-nine, one hun- dred, or whatever the number may be. Rug connois- seurs tell us how the fineness of rugs depends upon the quality of the materials used, the number of stitches to the inch, and how uncommon it now is to find as well-made articles as formerly. This leads us to con- sider the relative merits of the objects themselves, and we may pick up any Oriental rug we possess and, looking at its fringe, may note if it is of wool, hair, or cotton. Satisfying ourselves in regard to this, we shall then know of what the warp of the rug is made. We may cut off a thread of the fringe, if in doubt, burn it, and, when trained to distinguish the difference between the odour of burning wool and burning cotton, can determine absolutely whether it be cotton or not. Examination of the woof by separating the tufts and noting how many threads are run through the 34 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK warp to hold the knots in place will show whether the woof itself is made of wool, hair, or cotton. Sometimes two strands will be of cotton and one of wool twisted together, as is often the case in modern rugs. Now if the rug was meant to be an all-wool rug the presence of cotton would show an attempt to cheapen the article. If, however, the warp or woof were intentionally of cotton, we are able at once to locate it more or less absolutely, as certain rug-weav- ers invariably use cotton for warp threads. The finest and most beautiful Persian rugs are made on a cotton warp, as their frankly confessed white cotton fringe will testify. The next step in the procedure is to note how many knots there are in a square inch of this special rug, and whether the ends of the knots are long or short; whether they lie down over the woof threads, or stand up close together, making a surface like velvet. Remembering other rugs, and comparing each new example with all others, will very quickly put one in possession of many independent theories. Individual taste may prefer a coarse rug, choosing it rather than a fine one ; but a coarse rug should be known as such, and the reasons for its excellence should be accounted for. We never look for many stitches to the square inch in a rug whose chief charm consists of the fact that it is heavy and warm. In such cases the wool has been loosely spun, making a coarse warp, upon which are tied loosely woven threads in big knots, giving it a high nap which so overlaps the warp threads that the sides of the knot-ends fall over the woof threads and overlap each other, quite unlike the rugs where warp MATERIALS 35 threads are tightly twisted and of superlatively fine material, upon which just as many knots have been tied as can possibly be crowded, and the upright ends then clipped close, so as to make an even pile. Some silk rugs are so fine that many hundred stitches or knots are crowded into a square inch, and finely spun wool and hair can be treated so as to occupy as little room as silk. Rare old camel's-hair rugs were made with a far greater number of stitches or knots to the square inch than others made to-day of the same mate- rials prepared in a different way. We must consider materials always, when judging of the comparative merits of rugs. It holds to reason that closely woven rugs will wear better than those loosely made, and that a fine, even warp, so tightly pressed together as to keep each knot-end erect, will make a more vel- vet-like surface than when long ends are left in shaggy fashion. We may prefer the long warp to the short, but that is another matter. The natural desire to ornament plain surfaces brought about an attempt to apply decoration of one kind and another upon a woven material. A plain fabric once made, a free-hand sort of decoration could easily be applied with paint. Later, crude methods of printing and stencilling were adopted in the orna- mentation of tent-cloth and other woven fabrics, such becoming highly ornate and proving a successful way of perpetuating symbolic interpretation of current thoughts. To weave in pattern was not as easy as to apply decoration. Therefore the early attempts thus to produce satisfactory results show many slips that eventually became patterns of adventition, and, though 36 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK at first accidentally produced, such became finally historic and immensely significant. The check, the stripe, and many other patterns were discovered by ©\© ill! !!; ■■; S! CHANGE IN DESIGN CAUSED BY LIMITATIONS IN MATERIALS. one and another weaver independently. Tufts were originally made on woven fabrics by tying on various things, — grasses, feathers, beads, shells, etc., — and by embroidering or applying decorations. These early and primitive means of producing relief surfaces gave afterward to the new method of tying in knots of wool, patterns that imitated materials formerly used, so that in very ancient specimens we find feather mosaic work reproduced, and coloured beads and shells copied in designs worked out in wool. Patchwork in which the bits of cloth were sewn upon a plain woven material, so as to tell a story or to illus- trate a legend, has been called by some Orientals "Thought-work," and that made by Armenian women and native Syrian workers so appealed to Botticelli that he is said to have introduced the idea into Italy, and to have made use of the style for church decora- tion. The name " Opus Consuetum " was given to this cut-work, in which one material was decorated by another imposed upon it. The steps from the most primitive methods to the ARMENIAN PATCHWORK ILLUSTRATING THE STORY OF ST. GEORGE AND THE DRAGON, AND OTHER CHRISTIAN SUBJECTS MATERIALS 37 tying in of knots of coloured wools upon threads of warp were taken in due time, first one and then another style obtaining, and the knot carpet marks the highest development of the weaver's art. CHAPTER VI SYMBOLISM OF COLOUR From materials to the colouring of them ! A charming pursuit, and one that has always had about it a mysterious fascination, and in some cases almost a supernatural element ! To steal from flower, leaf, and root that which has made it a thing of distinctive beauty ; to match the rainbow tints which of all marvels seem the great- est ; to acquire from nature secrets that seem past finding out ; to wait upon ripening fruit for exactly the right mellowness and hue of its rine, — is to so associate the human with the Divine that a colour- maker and a colour-mixer among primitive peoples was considered gifted beyond others of the clan. What wonder that gems, and rocks, and ores, the most en- during of things created, suggested most beautiful colour schemes, and, as such, both the gems and their colours became sacred. So when, in the form of " totem," or " idol," the thing worshipped was per- sonified, it was of course made of appropriate mate- rial and colour. This we find exemplified perhaps in jade more truly than in anything else, — jade, that substance so idolised by the Chinese that everything concerning it is governed by regulations which control even the SYMBOLISM OF COLOUR 39 smallest details. Jade {yu), as a standard for char- acter, has been likened to virtue, the high value at- tached to it by all proves it to be truth. Its polish and brilliancy suggest honesty, its compactness accu- racy, its sharp angles justice, and its pearl-like pen- dants politeness, while its pure sound when struck suggests music, and the fact that all internal cracks are visible from the outside prove its sincerity. " Its lustre is permanency, its substance represents the Earth, and its scheme of colour, one shade not ob- scuring another, proves its loyalty." The colours of jade vary, but not so the Chinese use of them. Absolute fidelity to tradition marks the colour scheme of the Mongolian, and in the life of no other people can we better trace back the beginnings of colour-worship than among the Chinese. Our study of colour to-day in India, Persia, and Tur- key is of what, in spite of overturned governments and alien influences, has survived, but with the loss of the absolute quality which characterises adherence to tradition in a country like China, a living country to-day without break in its legend or history. Mon- golian thought has left its impress on the art of the entire Orient, and a study of the rugs and textiles of China, and especially of such as show Buddhist thought, throws great light upon many of the East- ern combinations and shadings. Originally, without any doubt, all peoples attrib- uted to the elements great powers of control of hu- man life and conduct; and to the five elements, earth, water, fire, air, and ether (or the beyond), were given significant forms and colours. These have regu- 40 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK lar precedence in the primitive art of all nations, though not enough definite proof exists for us to claim and demonstrate this fact save in Chinese art. It seems to have been an early idea that forces should be personified, and given various powers and attri- butes. A sort of nursery tale method of teaching the control of one force by another has led to a theory which is somewhat as follows: Earth (yellow) exists, and is conquered by the wood (green) which grows upon it. The destroyer, metal (white), is used to conquer wood by cutting it down. Metal in turn submissively yields itself to the heat of the fire (red) and only water (black) can subdue flame. This rea- soning led to a primitive use of colours that obtains to-day, and may be detected in ceremonial objects of the far East. Colour controls everything even now in China, the imperial yellow most often alluded to as a Chinese colour being the very last note of a scale which had its beginning in past centuries. During the present dynasty yellow has been used by the Emperor, and in varying shades has been allowed to princes of high rank, but the adherence to old custom was observed in its selection and adoption. " On the accession of a new dynasty, one of the five elements is always chosen as a symbol and affected as a colour," and it is thought by many that to this system, which has endured through thousands of years, may be traced the possible origin of " national colours." We can- not expect, even in so old a country as China, where laws and regulations have been established for centu- ries, to find these elemental thoughts in their primi- MUG-PLATE VI ANTIQUE GREEK RUG KUG-FLATE VI ANTIQUE GREEK RUG Oriental Expert's Description ' /^ LD rugs of this kind were made for church ^ use, to give to their folding tent churches a certain cathedral atmosphere, — using them as if they were cathedral windows. Some of these rugs have Christian symbols woven into them. This teas in the olden times hi the Greek Archi- pelago, especially in the island of Crete: the Greeks never knew when through fights and dis- cords they ivoidd be foiled to go from one place to another. " The number of panels in these rugs vary from one to three in each, with blue, green, or red backgrounds. ' ' As it is perceptible in the Shiraz more so than in other makes there is no comparison be- tween the old and the new rugs, as nothing coidd be uglier than the new ones, whereas the old ones represent a rich and harmonious combination of the most beautiful soft colours, the borders being of the rarest canaries and golden shades. 11 One of the panels of this rug is blue, the other salmon-pink; and around and between them are borders of the most beautiful shades of hay -in-the- field. The weave of this rug is prin- cipally the same as in Turkish rugs." Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. RUG-PLATE VI t SYMBOLISM OF COLOUR 41 tive purity, but they have so influenced the past that no history of colour would be complete without recognition of these great underlying truths. Were this a study of symbolism we should consider the relation of other peoples toward colour-demonstration of their beliefs, but it is only by way of suggestion that the foregoing hints have been given. The obtaining of colours from natural sources has always been the chief glory of the Oriental crafts- man, who thus secured what we term " fast " or fixed shades. Certain of these were known, and could be made by following formulae, but many others were the result of accident and could not be developed at will. There were few places where the custom was un- known of making holes in the beds of brooks during the dry season, into which, when the rain fell, all sorts of vegetable and mineral substances were deposited and left to act upon each other until, when again the dry season arrived, the contents of the holes were removed by the dyers, who, grinding all together in- discriminately, made shades which vied with the pi- geon's breast in beauty, and with the clouds of sunset in variety. Little care was taken in old times in the preparation of hair and wool, one lot being dyed in a pot that had been previously used, and in which some of the dye still remained to tint, without intention, the next colour employed. A beautiful softness was the result of this carelessness, and the reds and blues were rarely of the same shade throughout. What- ever is to be said about present methods, and the disastrous effects of aniline dyes, we may speak with absolute authority about the past. Old rugs made by 4 2 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK people who dyed their wools with vegetable dyes pre- pared according to traditional recipes have a beauty all their own, which entitles them to our respect and enthusiastic appreciation. Colour has been handled in widely differing ways, and it is wrong and leads to erroneous conclusions to attempt to interpret the ideas demonstrated in one part of the world, by the key to mysteries else- where. Hence it is apparent that the Churchman, however thoroughly he understands and adheres to ecclesiastical symbolism, could not make the slight- est use of such knowledge in the interpretation of Oriental colours. Nor would a thorough comprehen- sion of the Chinese use of the same colours as those made by the American Indians serve to enlighten the student who has discovered the similarity of intent that causes both the Indian and the Mongolian to endow all natural forces with form and colour. An important table has been furnished by Mr. Stewart Culin, director of the Museum of Archaeology of the University of Pennsylvania, which he offers us for purposes of comparison with the Chinese classifications, taken from " Mayer's Chinese Reader's Manual." CHINESE DIRECTION AND COLOUR SYMBOLISM Directions Seasons Colours Elements Planets Metals North Winter Black Water Mercury Iron East Spring Green Wood Jupiter Lead, tin South Summer Red Fire Mars Copper West Autumn White Metal Venus Silver Middle Yellow Earth Saturn Gold Directions North West South East Upper Lower SYMBOLISM OF COLOUR 43 ZUNI INDIAN COLOUR SYMBOLISM, ETC. Seasons Colours Winter Spring Summer Autumn Day Night Elements Air (wind or breath) Water Fire Earth (seeds of) Middle Year Yellow Blue Red White Many-colour Waking, or life condition Black Sleeping, or death condition All colours All elements and conditions This will materially help us to detect similarity of method, and deference paid by primitive thinkers to situations and conditions that are not always emphasised when civilisation has advanced. " The five directions" have each one of them been associ- ated with a colour among early art-workers, who in- clude the " centre " or " middle " as one of the direc- tions, this personal relation to the universe being characteristic of all primitive belief. Standing at the centre, the colour yellow, or the earth, fortifies the individual whose needs call for protection. From the cold North come winter, water, and the colour black. From the East comes the gracious sunlight, bringing spring, wood, and the colour green. From the South come fire, summer, and the colour red. From the West come autumn, metals, and the colour white. The Zuni Indian adds to his divisions " upper " and "lower," giving various colours to the "above," and black to the lower regions and to oblivion. With these extreme cases it is easy to demonstrate the relation of colour to the thought life of all the peoples of the earth, and the undesirability of 44 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK touching too lightly so important a subject. Our observations should and will lead us to a recognition of the facts that seem to have evolved from human ingenuity and effort to comprehend natural phe- nomena, and we finally find ourselves equipped with an intelligent system with which we may approach the rainbow-tinted textiles of the Orient. RUG-PLATE VII ASIA MINOR RUG MUG-PLATE VII ASIA MINOR RUG Size: 3.7X3.10 Oriental Experts Description ' c / HIS rug was made and used by Greeks. It -*• is the oldest rug of the kind I have ever seen. Such rugs resemble each other almost completely in their design and size; the only difference among them being in the different shades of the predominating blue and red col- ours, and the degrees of softness or ugliness re- sulting from duration of existence." Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. RUG- PLATE VII CHAPTER VII APPLICATION OF COLOUR — DYES t With flowers of thought we have twined the second column of the chart, and now must practically apply our de- ductions to objects at hand. Rues might have been made without colour and would have served utilitarian purposes as well, but they would hardly have found their way out of the Orient had not their flower- and gem-like quali- ties given them the transcending char- acteristics that bespeak the consideration of art-lovers everywhere. Self-coloured materials have been used in the manu- facture of certain rugs, the wool or hair having been taken from animals that are strongly marked by dark lines and masses down the back and along the tail, so that from a single animal several different shades are obtainable. The black thus secured is almost the only black known that is durable, as sooner or later all others corrode and eat the wool, so that in old carpets close examination will re- veal the absence of pile where once black knots had been tied. In passing the hand over some rugs a slight difference in the ft*' .** DYS8 COLOURS AND THEIR APPLICATION 46 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK surface is sometimes apparent, caused by the action of corrosive dye or strong mordant upon the wool. Many modern mordants consist of strong chemical preparations that take from the elasticity and wearing qualities of the wool. Experts will tell the age of a rug by noticing' the effect of long exposure to the light. Certain colours will change into others much more beautiful, which will remain permanent when the limit of fading is reached. In the preparation of dyes long exposure in the sunlight is often required, and many of the most ancient secrets are being discovered by modern crafts- men, who by personal investigation are finding out what has revealed itself in turn to each person who has manipulated natural materials. There are certain chemical dyes that do not fade, and some vegetable dyes that do fade, so that an absolute line cannot be drawn between them. One of the best methods of detecting the use of aniline dyes is to separate the pile, noting whether the wool is of the same colour, but of a deeper shade, near the knot, from what it is on the surface ; or if it is of an entirely different colour. It may not always hold true, but often enough to prove the rule, that vegetable dyes fade to lighter shades of their original colour, while anilines fade to different colours, one or another of the dyes used in combination entirely disappearing at times, and the other remaining. As, for example, where two colours are mixed to form a third, — like blue and yellow to form a green, — the yellow may almost disappear, leaving a dull blue, which proves to be per- manent and sometimes very beautiful, though pro- APPLICATION OF COLOUR-DYES 47 duced accidentally. In modern Turkish carpets we often find under a greyish yellow surface a deep crim- son, or beneath a pile of light blue, a dark brown colour. When blue dyed with vegetable colours fades it keeps a bluish tint throughout, and crimson shows traces of pink, even when it yields somewhat to the power of the sun. We must learn to handle our rugs as a botanist does flowers, and look to them for self-revelation, which we may confidently trust when we have trained ourselves in intelligent comprehension. In prepara- tion for a careful study of colour in Oriental rugs, it is essential that we banish all preconceived notions, and that we adopt a very simple plan of procedure, elaborating it only as our knowledge increases. We all possess a somewhat definite idea of the three primary colours, red, blue, and yellow. Accept- ing these as standards, in the examination of each new object we ask, if the rug is red, how red is it? How near the primary colour? A clear, absolute primary red has not a preponderance of yellow, nor does it hold too much blue. However interesting it may be for us to learn about the dyes used by rug-makers to produce the effects we see, it is not necessary for our purposes of study. What we must do is to analyse what we see, and define slight variations in tint, com- paring one antique specimen with another until we hold absolute conviction in regard to a few of the salient features that manifest themselves to us. For example, in the field of this old Kulah rug, is the red primary or secondary? Does it suggest yellow in- gredients or blue? Is this red, by comparison with 43 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK the clear primary adopted as standard, carmine, rose- madder, or crimson? This Khiva rug, how different the red from that of the Kulah ! how heavy it is, with blue and brown prop- erties ! Comparison follows ; the red of the Khiva is not a clear primary red, nor is the Kulah any more so, but the red in the Khiva would never be called by either of the names, crimson or rose, which we unhesi- tatingly apply to the Kulah colouring. A third specimen confronts us, and, with our standard and the variants in our minds, we assert that the red in this old Bokhara is of the same nature as that in the Khiva, while the light pink in which part of its pattern is worked suggests the crimson of the antique Kulah. Again, by comparison we note that modern Kulah rugs show a decadence of colour scheme, and a pur- plish tint takes from the beauty of the crimson used in antiques. Looking still further for an example of primary red used by rug-weavers, we find in old Asia Minor rugs, made before the popularity of rose shades, a so-called " Turkey red " which is absolute. It is neither vermilion nor carmine, nor is it exactly like European cardinal, but is shown to its fullest perfection in the hearth-rugs that, under the name of " Smyrna rugs," were sent to Europe early in the last century. In old Iran rugs a beautiful blue is found which is as near a full primary blue as can be reached in textiles. By comparison with it the blue of certain Ghiordes rugs is light, and though indigo yields as true a blue as can be named, the old Persian blue re- MUG-FLATE VIII GHIORDEZ RUG MUG-PLATE VIII GHIORDEZ RUG Author's Description TN this rare specimen of Anatolian weaving -*■ various well-known features are evident. The prayer-niche is like those found in antique Kulahs and in some Ladik specimens. Primi- tive ornament is skilfully handled in the nar- row stripes of the border, while in the broad band is found a rare rendering of the lily motif. A well-balanced cloud-form occupies the cen- tral position in the oblong at the top of the main central panel, while the inside border stripe unites with the lower oblong in such a way as to include it as a border, thus depriving it of its customary character of a lower oblong panel. RUCl-PLATK VIII APPLICATION OF COLOUR — DYES 49 sembles more the cobalt blue of fine old porcelain, as it has more of a metallic than a vegetable quality, which often, in old Shiraz rugs, seems iridescent. To Turkish red and Persian blue we add the imperial yellow of China as third primary, and, without con- sideration of the secondary colours at present, we may try to form some objective way of determin- ing where we find the strictest adherence to primary shades among rug-weavers. All further discoveries will then fall into line, and through analytical processes we may feel our way among the woven flowers of the Orient. CHAPTER VIII LOOMS, ETC. LOOMS, WARP, AND WOOF Consideration of materials used in the making of rugs and their colouring is naturally followed by close study of methods of manufacture, and examination of the paraphernalia of which the weaver makes use. In order to determine the age of a rug we should know how to detect differences in the weave incident to the sort of loom that has been em- ployed, the manner of tying the knots, and the way of using even the most primitive implements. Much is revealed in this way, and we may trace the nation- ality and sometimes the tribe of the weaver by noticing the finish of the sides of the rug, the nature of its selvage, and various other details. Shuttles, bobbins, needles, spindles, etc., made originally from fish and animal bones and shells, each and all claim our interested atten- tion, and we find that invention has al- ways responded to necessity. Prior to the rearing of looms, the weav- ing of narrow fabrics was accomplished, by all peoples in early stages of the art, LOOMS, WARP, A M n~W ( X )T LIBR ARY STATE NORMAL SCH08L MANUAL AST'S »ND H-.iME ECONOMICS SANTA B*R3AR.\, CALIFORNIA M^% ■*»- by fastening yarn threads together and attaching them by one end to a hook or to anything stationary, while the other end was firmly tied to the weaver's body. Into this simple webbing patterns were intro- duced so as correctly to join with other pieces, and when made into a complete material the narrow weave is not at once noticeable. All sorts of simple con- trivances antedate the making of looms as we know them, and the trained eye looks for the evidences of ancient craftsmanship which we sometimes find mani- fested in the tapestries (or khilims) of the Orient even now. In the old days of mediaeval development of Orien- tal ideas, after the Crusades, names were given to the then foreign ideas which were taught in the convents, and which became known by Latin names. As side- lights on the history and manufacture of rugs, all that we can learn of early methods is of immense assist- ance, for in old embroidery copy-books are sometimes found borders named and described that have been taken directly from Oriental rugs. Tail-pieces in old books, designs on coins, and the details of many other things of contemporary interest, while proving the arts to have been interdependent, one interpreting another, at the same time enable us to place styles of weaving and pattern in a most authoritative way. In the " Opus Pulvinarium," or " tent-mosaic " stitch we constantly find Turkish and Caucasian designs, and r- are sometimes surprised to discover in old samplers, especially in such as contain designs which have been *3» appropriated by the Greek church, many Scutari and *: Asia Minor motifs. 52 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Looms may be, as they ever have been, either up- right or horizontal. Thrown over the extended limb of a tree or upon an erected frame, the warp threads are stretched. Through these the woof thread, wound on a shuttle, is passed and forced tightly down into place, and the whole fabric kept taut according to rules and ways that differ with the individual work- man. In studying the finished rug we learn to note many of these peculiarities. We find that in some rugs, besides the simple finish on the sides, there seems to have been applied an extra over-and-over deco- ration, sometimes of one colour but often of several. In other makes the outer thread of the warp is much heavier than the others, and about it a solid colour is twisted, giving the effect of a heavy cord binding to the sides of the rug. Again a checker-work effect is produced by alternating the colour of the binding yarn with which the side cords are covered. Some weavers allow the webbing to extend in simple warp and woof beyond the part of the rug tied with knots, and, as in Shiraz and Beluchistan rugs, into this web- bing, or embroidered upon it, patterns of a distinctive nature are wrought. The fringe of a rug will some- times indicate the method of its manufacture, show- ing a heavy braided and looped end which held the warp thread with great firmness upon the loom, or it may reveal an inadequate and flimsy way of stretch- ing the warp, which is also detected in the ruffled sur- face of the carpet itself. Modern ingenuity and brain control is helping the Oriental to a knowledge of the latest and most ap- proved methods, and rugs are less apt to be crooked It UG-PLATE IX SHIR A Z RUG M VG-1'LA TE IX SHIRAZ RUG Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Oriental Expert's Description ' ' CT^HIS exceedingly interesting and beautiful -*- specimen was probably made in the eigh- teenth-century, and is very lustrous and silky. The design is well distributed in tree forms throughout the field, and the pattern in the web- bing which extends beyond the pile is clearly and carefully wrought.^ S. S. Costikyan, '«5*w*'.Brw*»~ ri ' tiVr .JJJWW^ RUG-PI.ATE IX LOOMS, WARP, AND WOOF 53 than they once were, though, with the pulling into shape of both ideas and warp-threads, some of the woven dreams of other days are destined never to be reproduced. In the preparation of the wool for weaving, the article which has most art significance is the spindle- whorl. Such, from earliest times, when they were made from natural objects, have been more or less elaborately decorated, and, even though modern in- vention has introduced machine-made spindles, the designs on the old have been copied in textiles, and whorls and scrolls in design trace back oftentimes to just such simple origin. Tight spinning and loose spinning may be noted in the nature of the twisted cotton, wool, or silk warp-threads, and as we learn to know how the yarns were twisted we shall be able to locate weavers and determine their nationality. With woof-threads upon warp have been independ- ently invented by all peoples alike various styles of weaving which have given diagonals, checks, and fancy patterns of adventition, and have, after their development, become regular designs copied in the pile of rugs. Needlework upon a woven web makes beautiful many of the fabrics of the Orient, notably Bagdad stripes, so-called camel's-hair shawls, and the Sommac rugs from the back of which hang the long ends of coloured wools used in the weaving and decoration. Nothing, however, exists of like beauty to some of the woven tapestries which, from the heavy woolen kliilims of the western and middle Orient to the silk tissues of China and Japan, reign supreme as the very acme of perfection among loom 54 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK products. Much greater skill is required to make these delicate tissues of intricate pattern than is needed in the tying in of knots in pile carpets, though the latter is rated as a higher art. Across Asia with almost magic power has swept of late years a resistless tide of progress which has threatened to put an end to all individuality of pro- duction. Workers to-day have, in many places where once superb work was done, turned into human machines, and, with no interest in either the folk-lore or habits of their own people, show keen desire to embrace Occidental ideas and methods. CHAPTER IX THE KNOT CARPET THE pile which distinguishes Oriental carpets from all others, is made by tying upon the warp, which has been previously stretched, wools of various colours, in such a way as to make a pattern. This is most dextrously done by the deft fingers of the Orientals, with great preci- sion and skill, and the knots are called either Turkish or Persian according to the method of tying them. For our purposes in rug-analysis it is not so necessary to know how these knots are tied as how they appear in the finished rug. On examination of the back of a rue we shall find that each thread of the warp is encircled by the knot-yarn, so that there appears a series of coloured stitches indicating the pattern which is worked out in knots on the surface of the rug. Turning the rug so that we may see the ends of the knot-yarn which form the pile, we find that in some rugs the two ends reach the surface together be- tween every other two warp threads, X%? PARAPHERNALIA 56 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK while in other rugs a single end comes from between each two of the warp threads. The former of these is known as the Turkish or Ghiordes knot, the latter as the Persian or Sinneh knot. The difference is at once evident upon investigation, and it may readily be seen that when the knots are so tied that one end of the yarn stands up between each thread of the warp there will be more knots to the square inch than when two threads of the warp are included in each tie of the knot. In all properly made Oriental rugs the knot is so securely tied that it is impossible to loosen or remove it by pulling the ends of the wool which form the nap or raised sur- face. In this way Oriental weaving differs from the attempts to copy the surface effect of rugs made ac- cording to orthodox methods, by drawing wools in and out of the warp without fastening them by knot- ting, so that the wearing qualities of the fabric are not to be depended upon. It requires close examination to discover the knot itself in Oriental rues. On the back of rugs we find the encircling threads of wool, and on the surface the design is made of the ends of the yarn, so that we must separate these ends in our analysis and follow them to the warp, where we find the knots. In vast numbers of old rugs the pile has worn off so as to expose the knots themselves, which are so mosaic-like in character as to give name to a style. Some collections consist wholly of such an- tiques, and it is absolutely impossible to reproduce their surfaces. However close the modern worker may cut the wools, and even burn away the ends with acids, the effect is unsatisfactory, and the attempt at decep- HAM AD AN HUG Loaned by Tiffany Studios OOK nes from between { these is >t, the latter as n investigation, knots are so 1 stands up between each 1 be more knots to the threads of the warp are knot. In all properly o securely tied that ng the a sur- &ovbv5Y<\ \smV^iT \stf fowjoi , f,- orn the — — ~- — e ac- ?ols in t fastening y knot- .aalities ol ic are not It r examination al rugs. On the back of ru threads of wool, of the ends of te these ends in our the warp, where we find of old the pile has - expose the Ives, which iaract< • name to a of such an- -ible to reproduce r close the i er may ■ ay the ith acids, .nd tin decep- THE KNOT CARPET 57 tion is easily detected. Only age itself will produce the "mosaic style" so much coveted by connoisseurs. Like beads upon a rosary, the knots seem to be strung, when an accidental ravelling gives us oppor- tunity closely to examine the component parts of a rug, and a very good way of determining the claim of warp and woof to great age is to draw out a woof thread from any part of the rug and note how difficult it is to straighten it. After days and weeks soak- ing in water, or even in prepared liquid, the kink still remains. It is true that some well-woven modern rugs may be thus tested, and the length of time taken to straighten the woof-thread may be almost as great as that needed by the antique ; but in a great number of specimens examined the result has been surprisingly convincing when other claims to antiquity have failed. In fact, without seeing the rugs themselves, one be- comes expert in discovering qualities and peculiarities of these woof threads which at first might strike one as being of the least importance of the three distinct parts of all pile carpets, the warp, woof, and knot. Fraud and a desire to lessen expense have led workers to introduce into the woof, which holds in place the knots after they have been tied, strands of cheaper materials than those used in the rest of the rug. Threads of cotton are some- times wound about by a thread or more of wool, and when the habits of weavers are learned these tricks are easily placed. Without woof threads there would be no weaving, and as both warp and knots frankly confess to the casual observer what they are, less attempt is made to introduce cheaper materials in 5 8 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK them. Heavy woof threads give weight and body to many beautiful fabrics, but it is when the woof threads are of good quality and extreme fineness that we find the most flexible results in the finished rugs. Prominence is sometimes given to fabrics by the introduction of metal. Upon a silk warp gold woof threads are woven, making a solid gold background for the knots of the pattern, which stands out in relief. Rarely beautiful is such unusual effect, and as temple- hanging or votive offering the creation is unsurpassed. There will always be counterclaims made by en- thusiasts for the greater ancestry of methods and designs. For many years Egyptologists argued with the lovers of Persian art for the supremacy of motifs of ornament, as well as of processes of manufacture. The home of the knot carpet has been a matter of discussion, and, without lingering over any arguments for or against rival claims, we may safely assert that in Persia the fullest development of the art was reached, and from Persia the greatest inspiration was derived and carried East and West wherever the Oriental loom has been erected. Within half a century the claims of China to priority in many art motifs and in- ventions have for the first time been severally consid- ered, and much that was once ceded to Persia and India has been traced to China. Comparisons are now made between Persian and Chinese motifs of ornament that suggest similar former discussions be- tween things Persian and things Egyptian. RUG-PLATE X SHIRAZ RUG BUG-PLATE X "A SHIRAZ RUG Size: 7.10 X 5.1 Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Oriental Expert's Description RUG bearing evidence of Kirman influence upon Shiraz weaving."" S. S. Costikyan. Author's Description The outer border stripe of this beautiful rug is distinctively Kirman in style, as is the strangely conventionalized bird design in the broad band, in which four birds with bills touching are so arranged, with light and dark bodies alternating, as completely to disguise their forms and to make a pattern of unusual interest. The small floral forms scattered over the field of the rug change in colour from time to time in such a way as to make the background appear different in one place from what it is in another. Such is not the case, however; but the magic weaving defies analysis, and charms simply by its beauty and reposeful disposition of colours and tints. The fabric has a gem-like quality which adds depth and value to the softness of the materials. A most interesting inscription is obscurely wrought in the upper part of the border in the outer stripe, which testifies to the intention of the weaver to make as perfect a fabric as possible, and to the fact that he came originally from Kirman. The age of the rug is reckoned to be almost tivo hundred years. It is, however, in a state of perfect preservation, and has about it a quality that suggests its ability to render many more years of satisfactory service as a household treasure. RUG- PLAT K. X CHAPTER X GEOGRAPHY OF THE RUG In presenting the chart method of studying Orien- tal rugs it is with the firm belief that by thus syste- matizing and arranging facts the mind is equipped with data and the eye is trained to see. It would, however, be detrimental to all progress to overburden the memory, and therefore we should proceed most cautiously as we advance from general to special con- siderations. The field of the rug-chart and the columns that bound it on the right and on the left are now distinctly T U K I s H C A U c A S I A N ? E 7? I A N T U "R e o M A U 7~\ i H D I A 6o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK impressed upon our minds, and we may demand from each new specimen that we handle a response in itself to our questioning in regard to the materials and colours used, methods of manufacture, the original use, if any is indicated by the shape and size of the rug, and what are the differences and similarities in weave and finish. We are thus legitimately led to a desire to locate the rug-weavers through whose handiwork we have arrived at various conclusions which we desire to prove ; for as we are studying objects analytically, questions are forced upon us by our own discoveries. We note, without being told, that there seem to be a few marked varieties in rug productions, and that all the rugs we examine are more or less like one or the other of these styles. A glance at the bottom of the rug chart will show five divisions which are the broadest and most com- prehensive possible, and one will progress much faster who is willing to make no effort at subdivision until later. The Orient, for our purposes, is to be considered only in the light of its art, and an outline map will show the natural divisions — lakes, rivers, and mountain ranges — that have at different periods been the cen- tres of first one and then another great epoch-making civilization and art influence. Each student should fill in an outline map as individual research makes it possible, and it is most desirable that we should become familiar with the changes in boundaries and in styles brought about by great world movements. In order to do this, let us look first at an outline I GEOGRAPHY OF THE RUG 61 map and note the physical aspect of the country, the same now as it was before the migratory tribes made tent homes for themselves. The prevalence of hills and mountain ranges will suggest the influence upon native industries of high altitudes where the wild goats roam, and we know that the sheltered valleys ~77/£ComAN OUTLINE MAP SHOWING FIVE DIVISIONS OF RUG-PRODUCING COUNTRY. hidden away among the hills must protect both people and flocks from outside influence and foster traditional methods. In desert places we must look for oases which in caravan routes have been trading- posts from time immemorial. Seas and lakes, like the 62 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK great rivers, have known many dwellers beside them who have through the ages developed these natural resources for their own purposes. Using various of these land and water peculiarities we may bound our five broad divisions as we name them. The first, encircled on the west by the Medi- terranean and Black seas, we shall separate from the rest of the Orient by " the great river Euphrates," and call this part of the country, in our classification "Turkish." In the district between the Black and Caspian seas we locate the provinces that we call " Caucasian," and between the Caspian Sea and the Persian Gulf we have the most important centre in the history of rug-weaving, — the third or " Persian " divi- sion. North of this, and east of the Aral Sea, we find the Khiva desert and the fourth or "Turkoman " divi- sion, leaving the peninsula of India to mark the fifth or " Indian " division. Upon the outline map we may draw the lines that bound our division, and then consult an atlas for details that will enable us to see what modern nation- alities, provinces, and cities we have enclosed, and later, as our study proceeds, we may fill in all that we conscientiously deem we have made our own. These broad divisions distinctly mark as many styles, which, in their purity, may be called by the five names already given, — Turkish, Caucasian, Per- sian, Turcoman, and Indian ; and in these are found the peculiar characteristics that have already. attracted our notice, so that almost without our volition we have been forced to recognize them. That style in which the unit of ornament seems to be of paramount GEOGRAPHY OF THE RUG 63 importance we find in the Turkish division. Geomet- ric design marks the second, or Caucasian, and dis- tinctly floral ornament the Persian division, while the octagon and medallion are most elaborately worked out in the fourth, or Turcoman, and the fifth or Indian division gives itself most lavishly to tiny f Turcoman town 4» AfaHANlSTAN itf'i- OUTLINE MAP FILLED IN FROM MEMORY. details in the elaboration of even the large structural patterns that cover great spaces with minute tracery. By way of further describing these styles we may use for illustration of the first division any old Turkish rug which shows in repetition all over the upper part 64 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK of the rug, above the prayer disc, one single motif symmetrically arranged in both border and in field ornamentation, for this adherence to the principle of the unit in design, although not universal, is sufficient to force itself upon our notice. On handling another rug of somewhat different char- acter we notice the prevalence of geometric designs, skilfully conceived and elaborately worked out, which have a vigour and strength about them and show " adherence to tribal purity" in border patterns, etc. These primitive designs group themselves under our second division. This in turn leads us to note that both the already specified styles seem to be influenced at times by another quite as distinct as they, which has floral characteristics about it, although it adheres in the main to geometric divisions. We are thus led up through this subdivision to the separate variety which is absolutely floral without geometric sugges- tion even. Long, flowing, undulating, finished curves indicate vines, growing plants, and trailing creepers, which carry us into the third division made for our convenience through our own observation. The fourth or Turcoman, division seems to control all medallion and octagon designs, although we find indications of such forms in some of the classes already noticed. This makes it difficult to decide into which of the four divisions we may place those specimens in which the designs show a depar- ture from purity and tradition. Lastly we find it necessary to make a fifth division for certain rugs which seem nondescript, at times combining many of the features we have learned to BUG- PLA TE XI ASIA MINOR RUG BUG-PLATE XI ASIA MINOR RUG Oriental Expert's Description " /I ^ Anatolian rug of the early part of the ■^■*- eighteenth-century.'''' S. S. Costikyan. Author's Description The Rhodian lily design is well illustrated in the broad border of this antique Asia Minor rug, in which are such a combination of styles that it would hardly be possible to classify the specimen less broadly than as a product of Anatolia. The Rhodian motif is handled with greater fidelity in this rug than is usual, and it shows to perfection the make-up of the alter- nate figure in the main border stripe which in early weavings was a geometric star, but which has been softened into a floral form in this rug. In the serrated design which bands the prayer- niche is seen the water motifs surmounted by the wave crest, which was often rendered sym- bolically in early Ladik rugs, but which has passed into accepted design by Kidah weavers. The intimate association of water with worship, as ordered by the Koran, forced this design upon the enthusiastic Mohammedans. GEOGRAPHY OF THE RUG 65 recognize, but oftener showing new thoughts and methods. This fifth division we call Indian. If only we can content ourselves right here with apparently slow progress, by making a close examina- tion of these main features in rugs in which they are distinct and evident, we shall be ready to study care- fully the designs with which, in spite of ourselves, we have become familiar. We shall find much side light thrown upon our task by observing all sorts of other art manifestations in metal, porcelain, wood, etc., for purposes of comparison, which will reveal to us the mental attitude of the Oriental craftsman toward the decoration of whatever object he was beautifying. CHAPTER XI RELIGION Of the religious beliefs which have most effectually influenced pattern, those that led to nature-worship were necessarily the earliest, the sources of life being most profoundly reverenced. These early beliefs left legacies to the weavers among the ancients, and Art owes to them a debt she cannot often enough acknowl- ledge. In approaching this most absorbingly inter- esting subject, we can touch only lightly upon it, gleaning such information as will materially assist us in a general comprehension of the thought-life of the people of the Orient, that we may understand their allusions and symbols. During the development of the chaotic conditions in which were the elements of later religions, the observations and reflections of man were more or less independent and largely indicative of reverence for one supreme God. When teachers arose, on through the centuries, who purported to be the embodiment of Deity or His special prophets or messengers, their names were given to their systems of worship, and they have figured in history as founders of the great religions. Those beliefs which have most effectually influenced pattern are indicated in the six-pointed star in the rug chart, and through these we may trace RELIGION 67 back to the mythological naturalism which gave them birth. Buddhism began its eastern journeying from the STAR SHOWING SIX RELIGIONS. plains of India over two thousand years ago, and to day its vitality and strength are shown in art objects which in China and Japan, Thibet and Burma, are 6S THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK as true to type as they ever were. Much of the orna- ment that has been claimed as belonging to other religions is used by Buddhists to-day as it has been through the centuries; and, leaving to ethnologists the question of origin of symbols, it is quite possible in many cases to discover and verify the absolute. We find that Buddhism indulges in an over-abun- dance of ornament, which may be the result of the dignity given to all life — in plant and animal as well as in human form — as the possible residence of the soul in transmigration. No smallest detail is omitted in depicting things of the earth, which in their materi- ality furnish symbols and suggest eternal truths. In our modern homes to-day we find, far distant from the land of its birth, design that is absolutely Buddhistic and which definitely suggests one or another of the acknowledged motifs of Chinese Buddhist orna- ment, among which the eight emblems : — the wheel of the law, the lotus, the knot of destiny, the twin-fish, the canopy, the urn, the umbrella, and the basket of flowers, with the trisula and swastika, most frequently occur. We must bear in mind that the question that most concerns us now is not how best we can study Buddhism or any other of the religions that have most definitely influenced the history of art, but how we may learn to detect the earmarks of each in the handling of objects to-day. Exhaustive analytical work can be accomplished only by the profound student, but there is much that is definite enough to be taught in a mere primer of ornament, and there are a few forms that should be attributed to Buddhism more often than JAPANESE ART OBJECTS (Shinto) (Buddhist! RELIGION 69 they are. Among these the lotus medallion which appears in old Persian rugs is of paramount import- ance. We find it in the rugs of Kirman and Ispahan, whither it has drifted from the far East, differing from the "pomegranate medallion," which is largely phallic in its suggestion, and from the ordinary rosettes based on the "Assyrian daisy" and the " Star of Bethlehem" which appear in outline in old Persian and Turkish ornament. Mongolian Buddhism favoured the use of this lotus medallion, and in many old fabrics we find that the eight attitudes of Buddha have been converted into something more readily understood by the weavers, who, when originally studying the petals in each of which Buddha is represented, imagined each figure to belong to the flower form at its base, and so por- trayed it. Buddhist art in Thibet has given to the products of the northeastern looms of Asia the "square cross" and the " dordje" so often found in Tur- coman rugs with many other features which we shall group when studying later the fabrics of well-known localities. Buddhism in its purity cannot be studied in India to-day, but the lasting influence of its teach- ing is felt in much that is claimed to be strictly Mohammedan, and, joining forces with that second great art power in the Orient, ornament became so mongrel a thing in India that it is difficult to separate it into its component parts or to make definite claims for it. Recognizing, then, in some modern pattern, no matter who wove the fabric, an indication of Bud- dhist thought, we may reach back through it to p re- Buddhist times, and to the early and natural religions of all eastern Asia. 7 o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK In both China and Japan the national religion still makes use of art objects that may be distinguished from those that have been borrowed from other relig- ions, and, while it is not too late, such should be grouped in museums to assist students in their efforts to demonstrate truth. Buddhism, wherever it has travelled, has baptised native gods with Buddhist names, and has accounted for them as former or later incarnations of Buddha, or of Buddhist saints. Now that commercialism is inspiring native workers to make use of new patterns, they are everywhere com- bining new with old material, and great confusion naturally ensues. The art of Japan floats like a flower on the sea of Chinese thought, and Buddhism, with its wealth of ornament, finds its most poetic expression in that country in contrast to the early religion (Shintoism, or the worship of spirits), whose emblems are of the sim- plest nature. They are, however, perpetuated, and may always be distinguished from things Buddhist when the principles of Shintoism are comprehended. Much of the art of Japan and China is based on idol and demon worship. The elements are personified by gods who are supposed to preside over them ;' such, with their attributes and emblems, adding immensely to the wealth of Mongolian ornament. We find, for example, that the thunder-god of Japan is portrayed as possessing numberless drums ornamented with the sign known as the tomoyc, which owes its origin to some long-ago conception of elemental forces, but which has been adopted by Corea and Japan as a national and heraldic crest. As such we meet it in IMAGE OF BUDDHA AND BUDDHIST ART OBJECTS RELIGION 71 our analytical study, and through it we find our way into the consideration of the many discussions about it. Without doubt, among other things it refers to ele- mental conditions and, like the tae-kieh of China, it is universally respected by scholars and philosophers to whose erudition we owe our still limited knowledge of the religions of the past. Use is made in China and Japan of flower and plant emblems to repre- sent things desirable in human life, — longevity, wealth, happiness, etc. ; and the bamboo, peach, and pome- granate vie with each other for supremacy in the furnishing of art motifs. Granting a priority of about a thousand years to Buddhism and Buddhist art, we must acknowledge that Mohammedanism, with its determination to tra- vel with the message of the Prophet wherever the human foot had already trod, made in a short time a record for itself that rivalled all others in the estab- lishing of a characteristic school of ornament, though inspiration was drawn from every obtainable source, and all that had prevailed before it was made subject to it. So rapid, complete, and lasting has been the march of this conquering power, that great confusion exists in the minds of those who have not considered the original sources of ornament adopted by Moham- medanism. There remains a great work to do, and volumes might be written full of explanations and considerations that would materially help such study. Our claim for Oriental rugs is that they are silent witnesses which are patiently awaiting our recognition, and which we shall be able to interpret when we have thoroughly learned the language of art. Half-know- 72 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK ledge bids fair to defeat all honest effort to arrive at absolute truth ; and to escape from the dangers which beset our path, we must pre- pare our minds to be respon- sive to that which speaks to us in the ornament we are study- ing, rather than seek responses to our own thought and pre- conceived opinions. Mohammedanism, the religion of the Arab, shares JEWISH MARRIAGF.-I.ANTERN _ ^ (Showing six-pointed star known with Christianity a Hebrew commonly in ornament as either the " shield of David" or ^ancestry, and all the great ac- " Signet of Solomon. ') J ° cumulation of Talmudic and Cabalistic imagery has served Islam as a foundation for a fanciful and far- reaching system of ornament which has freely adopted the t a 1 i s m a n i c " shield of David " and the " signet of Solomon," with other equally signi- ficant features all its own. These have been transplanted Eastland West, where, irrespective of their origin, they have been given names under which they have appeared in art, so that it is necessary to look back to pre-Moham- medan days for the national religions. Thus fabric made in Persia may be strictly speaking " Persian " and yet be wholly Arabic or " Mohammedan," while among nomadic tribes in Persia we may find single elements which suggest ancient beliefs. Within the past half-century, exploration and JEWISH ORNA- MENT. (Lotus-Jlo-wer, Six- pointed star, and Water-Motif.) RELIGION 73 scientific investigation and study have proved beyond all speculation that certain of the little-understood geometric forms had special reference to past con- ceptions of natural phenomena, and, as the migration of symbols is successfully traced, the borrowed arts may be compared with those of independent origin. The arts and sciences are interdependent. For ex- ample the student of languages, who traces back through all cursive forms, like the modern Persian or Arabic, to the rectangular period before curves were adopted, may illustrate with designs in woven fabrics the truth he is endeavouring to establish. Such a discovery, though without intent, throws light on the subject of ornament, and is often more convincing than that chosen to illustrate a pet conception of the student of art. The textile art owes more to Mohammedanism than to any other religion ; and eastward far into Mongolia, and across the northern coast of Africa to Spain in the west, its progress has described its emblem, the Cres- cent, and its arabesques have mingled Saracenic with native art motifs everywhere. This statement cannot be too forcibly impressed upon the student, who finds it easy to recognize marks of the living religion, and is in danger of overlooking much that the grasping power of Islam has wrested from native folk-lore and primitive thought. Another aspect of the situation forces upon us the recognition of an independent style which developed in the conquered countries to which the Mohamme- dans carried new ideas. This is often called " Mon- grel " but is so definite that periods may almost always 74 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK O A «* be assigned to it, and results are easily traced to it. For example, the Arabs carrying the knowledge of mathematics into Persia, the land >? /uxh. ^^ °^ dreams and mysticism, awaken- ed smouldering fires upon long- neglected altars, for from '' Ur of the Chaldees" Abram had wandered westward centuries before, carrying with him in incipient condition much that in a highly developed state returned with the Mohammedan to the land between the great rivers Tigris and Euphrates. The speculative tendency in the thought-life of the Persians immediately seized upon these mathematical suggestions, and their interpretation brought about a renaissance of their own past, so that the purely Persian held its own even in its assimila- tion of foreign elements, and through that mediaeval period in the history of Iranian art we find our way back to Zoroastrianism and Magdaism. Christianity has influenced the ornament of Asia less than any ANCIENT FORMS OF FIRE- ALTARS copied in design, other religion , and still some re- ference to it should be made in the study of ornament in textiles, for a very definite use of Christian symbols ] r i a ODD o H Z X en H w W Z a, < RELIGION 75 has been developed by the Nestorian and Greek Churches ; and northward and eastward along the Black Sea, and westward into Europe, we may trace the wanderings of Semitic tribes who have adopted Christian symbols and introduced them with their own tribal patterns into their woven fabrics. All along the western shores of the Black Sea the textile art shows great similarity in the ornament it has adopted, and in famous Greek monasteries the indis- criminate use of patterns has caused the widespread distribution of mixed designs, which in Bulgaria, Roumania, and along the Danube, have been adopted and conveyed to places far inland, where the same motifs may be found as those used in Scutari and in Turkish possessions along the southern shores of the Black Sea. This transcontinental migration carried into Poland and northern Europe many ideas which were fostered and developed by patrons there of the textile art, who FIRE-TWIGS USED IN ANCIENT WORSHIP. transferred looms, weavers, and patterns overland from the Orient. Costly fabrics were woven, and certain motifs were so often used that Norse and Polish names have been often erroneously given to patterns that had their birth in Anatolia the " land of the sun- rise," between the Black and Caspian seas. The methods of prayer which have been developed in these various religions, have definitely marked 7 6 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK design. From the fire-altar of the Zoroastrians to the tallest minaret of the Moslems; from the prayer- wheels of Thibet to the gohei of Japan ; from the STAND FOR HOLDING FIRE-TWIGS, WHICH, IN MODIFIED FORMS, ANCIENT FIRE-ALTAR. IS SHOWN IN DESIGN. prostrations of Hindu idol-worshippers to the calm lotus-seated Buddhist saint, from the clappers in Chi- nese temples to the bells of Christianity, ornament has developed under the fostering influence of human need and thought. No more interesting study engages the attention of mortal man than that which shows how each age in turn finds its own way of calling for Divine power, prayer-rugs, prayer-wheels, and rosaries each and all testifying to man's desire to obtain the gifts of the gods. CHAPTER XII MIGRATION OF PATTERN Before the migration of patterns one might trace the origin of fabrics by reading their ornamentation and noting the designs or ideographs used to depict the thought of the craftsman or art-worker. Now it is almost impossible to find pure designs, so crossed are some motifs by certain others. Wars and pilgrimages have carried the thoughts of people to each other, and monerrel ornament is the result. It is not uncom- mon at the present time to see patterns that once had most sacred significance used for the most utterly sec- ular — one might almost say profane — purposes. The pilgrim from the Vale of Cashmere, who for his journey to Mecca makes a rug of priceless value and marvellous beauty, weaves into the fabric all the tri- bal patterns and traditions that are dear to his heart as inheritance. At his bidding wools have been spe- cially prepared and dyed, and everything has helped toward the production of a perfect article. He may perchance sell his rug in Arabia to a pilgrim who has journeyed to the Holy City from Morocco, who in turn sells his rug to the other, and in their respective homes, far distant from their places of manufacture, these rugs are copied by families and tribes who doubtless false- ly interpret designs and but poorly imitate patterns. 78 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Later on, these rugs, which are regarded as choice relics, may be sold to travellers who think that they are buying directly from the original weavers. The purchasers, knowing nothing of either design or its migration, respectively regard the rug bought in Morocco as representing Moorish style, and that procured in India as typical of Indian ornament. Great confusion of thought is the necessary and inevitable result. It thus becomes more than ever the duty of the thoughtful student to endeavour, if possible, not to add to this lamentable state of things, and in no way can this be better accomplished than by holding to the analytical study of objects at hand until the eye becomes trained to distinguish for itself between pure and mixed patterns. Fortunately it is not too late, for we are still near enough to the time when the textile art was the repository for traditional patterns, and there is still left enough that is true to assert itself, and force us to further inquiry and study of the great beginnings of things ; while with each new draught from the refreshing fountain of knowledge we find our- selves able to think more soberly and to see more clearly. The practical question is asked, " How may this be done?" In the first place, our interest will lead us to consult students of comparative religions for all the information they can give us regarding the ideas of primitive man about the great problems of existence; and from antiquarians and ethnologists we may learn how these thoughts were first manifested in art. Man, finding himself in the midst of created things BUG-PLATE XII SIXTEENTH-CENTURY RUG MUG-PLATE XII SIXTEENTH-CENTTJR Y R UG Size: 6.11 X 4.9 Oriental Expert's Description " CT^HIS rug ivas made in Portugal by expert -*- weavers brought from the Orient. It was accidentally burned in 1881, in London, Eng- land. It has a most interesting private history which will be made public at some future day" Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. A.. ...*••' J '■■'!'WJ' 1 RUG-I'LATK XI 1 MIGRATION OF PATTERN 79 other than himself, could not fail to have ideas con- cerning them. These earliest conceptions of the human brain found expression in the art of all the peoples of the earth, and we trace sun motifs and star motifs, rain and flame motifs, in all early patterns. Emblems of deities presiding over natural phenomena, spirits to be placated, demons to be pacified, — each and all were symbolized, and thoughts about them were perpetuated in ornament. These patterns have been corrupted by weavers who have deviated from traditional thought so far as to be unable themselves to interpret them ; but still in the Oriental rug we find enough of value to insist upon it as an interpretative object to handle, and the testimony of many students will prove their ability to utilize the survival of ancient thought found in many patterns to-day. The onward sweep of civilization has caused the hidden and occult thought of one century to be but empty form in the next, so that we may deal with ornament without penetrating the mysteries that underlie it and upon which it is based. So powerful has been the cross-current of thought, however, that great styles have grown out of primitive beliefs, and when enough of them have been discovered and they have become sufficiently apparent to us, we shall be able to trace the influence of one period after another in the world's history, realizing that under main styles are grouped many lesser divisions. A few of the most important of these styles have been given to us in the five divisions that we have already adopted, and we must learn to detect the general peculiarities in pattern before we attempt to So THEOR1ENTAL RUG BOOK consider local characteristics. Subdivisions of the subject will give us, under the main styles, Turkish, Caucasian, Persian, Turcoman, and Indian, and the lesser but quite as important modifications and com- binations of them known as — Byzantine Moorish Russian Mongolian Jewish Hispano-Moresque Buddhist Japanese Greek Sicilian Hindu — and many other styles, each of which may con- tribute some strand in the modern rug which will be recognized by the student who has become familiar with the principles of pristine art. In such we find the crossing and recrossing of human thought, and the influence of one people upon another, until we find that fact and fancy have woven a web that entrances and enthralls us. From the time of Alexander, the great "Sikunder" of history, to the latest efforts of greater powers to subdue the lesser, war has been one of the most direct and powerful causes for the migration of pattern. The appearance of classic Greek ornament in the heart of Asia has puzzled more than one thoughtful student, who accepts first one and then another belief regarding the claims of Europe and Asia for priority in the creation of design. Some students favour the belief in the migration from Asia to Europe of such well-known forms as the swastika and the lotus, while others insist that both are Greek forms carried by European conquerors into the Orient: Of late years the claims of China have forced themselves upon all interested in the migration of pattern, and the calm, staid evidence of centuries MIGRATION OF PATTERN 81 makes a strong appeal in favour of her right to much that limited knowledge has heretofore attributed to better-known places, and much has been discovered in Chinese ornament that bears evidence of the use of motifs in prehistoric workmanship that were supposed to have originated elsewhere. Many students of Chinese art — or, we might say more broadly, of Mon- golian art— feel that, however absolute may have been the sway of the Egyptian lotus over the ornament of western Asia, it was the lotus of China which gave birth to the medallion in ornament which is now known as a Mongolian element wherever it is found. The early lotus forms in Chinese art antedate the influence of Buddhism in that empire, and are very different from the well known Hindu and Assyrian lotus designs. Opinions vary so about facts, that individual re- search seems to be the only safeguard for the student, whose examination and comparison of existing mate- rial and opinions should furnish him with sufficient reason for the " hope that is in him." We have not yet arrived ; it is not for us to be " in at the finish ;" but we have a right to our place in the circumference of opinion which surrounds each disputed fact. Such devotion to task has been displayed by modern writers that it gives us unbounded pleasure to refer to their efforts to establish truth. If we were not en- deavouring to make independent research with our own feeble rushlight, it would be futile to do more than supply a bibliography of such books as Count Goblet D'Alviella's "Migration of Svmbols ", and numberless articles in magazines issued by societies 82 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK whose sole object is to examine and sift information. Students who are adding their valuable quota to the accumulation called " modern knowledge " are not making any pretense. They are endeavouring, with unswerving fidelity, to treat their own chosen and special subjects with profound ability, avoiding the consideration of all that does not bear directly upon them : sometimes drawing the line so closely around their specified purpose that much that seems to the casual critic to be related to it is excluded. It is true that the great reservoirs of knowledge exist. It is left for us as individuals, however, to establish distributive channels, so that the truth may reach all. It is surprising how oftentimes some possession which has been for a century or two in one family, — -handed down by one to another, hidden from the general observation of students, — is suddenly dis- covered by one who, laying no claim to even ordinary knowledge, turns, with the intelligence born of desire to know something about material objects, to these oft- handled treasures, and for the first time realizes that the possession is one that will throw light on present discussion. This is exemplified by the attitude of many who, after reading the monograph on the sivastika written by the late Thomas Wilson and published by the Smithsonian Institution, found that they possessed rare curios decorated with the now well-known form. Such sent their treasures to Mr. Wilson as gifts, and in personal letters they were assured by the great thinker that each object silently testified to what he had grown to believe, and convinced him afresh of the truths he had endeavoured to demonstrate. MIGRATION OF PATTERN S 3 Purchasers of Oriental rugs fifty years ago secured many in which patterns were true to tribal distinc- tions, and such are to-day hidden away in the homes of Europe and America, waiting for intelligent recog- nition. Such possessions hold an "open sesame" power which may lead some future student into the great labyrinth of speculation, out of which it is hardly possible to escape without an opinion. This view of the subject should lead each individual to make an intelligent study of those objects over which he is custodian, and the claims of such should be con- sidered, as they, unlike books about them, are objec- tive and should be allowed to speak for themselves. The varying opinions of those whose conclusions we respect, in regard to the migration of pattern, lead to two important points of view. Some hold that pattern was independently discovered by all primitive peoples, while others insist that earlier civilization invented, and later peoples carried symbolic decora- tion from one to the other. Whichever is true of the beginning of things we may leave to learned authorities to decide ; but for light on the subject at hand we have to consider both the patterns that we can trace to mieration, and those that have arisen in answer to the needs and beliefs of individual nations; for our study is of the use of pattern, not of its birth, and as we advance we must learn to follow the advice of Emerson, who says : . " Trust thyself : every heart vibrates to that iron string." * * * * * "A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within, more than the lustre of the firmament of bards and sages." We find ourselves face to face with the necessity of more careful examination of patterns and designs in rugs, as some knowledge of these subjects is absolutely necessary before we are fully equipped to subdivide the five great classes and proceed with our analytical study. Our avowed method is to deal with what we see, and through it to be led back to that which ante- ceded it, basing pattern upon symbol, and symbol upon human thought, instead of trying to find in pattern something to fit a preconceived notion, or to illustrate some thought to which it bears no possible relation. The patterns on rugs are to be studied after methods and materials have been thoroughly investi- gated, and the advice which all collectors should heed as they approach the study of design is to " make haste very slowly," avoiding all effort to force the eye to see what does not exist, and to twist the designs of adventition into those that show deliberate intention. M UG-PLA TE XIII ISPAHAN RUG It UG-FLA TE XIII ISPAHAN RUG Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Oriental Expert's Description ; <-i HIS seventeenth-century Ispahan rug ivas -*■ originally surrounded by a ivide border of conventionalized palmate forms, tvhich, being more ivorn than the rest of the rug, has been removed, leaving only the narrow guard stripe as finish. "A variety of tree and plant forms crowd each other upon the well-covered field of the rug, making in very truth a woven garden.'''' S. S. Costikyan. w < J a, i 35 DESIGNS 85 There are certain well-known divisions into which historic pattern has been apportioned, and these first attract our notice. In the rug-chart we have crowned the side columns with "applied thought," and upon the accumulated thought of the ages we find that that which we call " ornament" is alone left us of all the mental activity of days that are past. To handle ornament carefully and correctly is an art in itself, and only after study- ing its principles should we consider its revelations. It is possible to be absolute about a few things, and it is far better to hold to them than to be confused in the mind over many things. Ornament is decoration that has evolved from pat- terns that were based on symbols used by primitive peoples to express thought. The signs stood for ideas, which, interpreted by one generation after an- other, finally dropped away, the more or less well copied signs remaining. Being altered first by one weaver and then another, pattern resulted, and the pattern has become ornament, and as such is taught in our schools where design is applied to all sorts of materials under the name of " historic ornament." All ornament may be separated into three main divisions, — geometric, naturalistic, and conventional. Geometric ornament is naturally the first to reveal itself to the weaver, because of the nature of the materials used. The earliest patterns are always due to the limitations of the weaver, who must confine himself to the opportunities afforded by warp and woof, which restrict him to rectilinear designs. Curves and circles are of later development, and show 86 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK the ability of the weaver to overcome difficulties. Naturalistic ornament shows that the weaver was a thinker as well, and, no matter how rude the copy of flower, leaf, or bird, thought may be traced in all attempts to represent objects. Conventional orna- ment may be looked upon as an arranging of motifs to suit the needs and fancy of the designer. These three great divisions of ornament may each be divided into other three — ornament of adventition, ornament of construction, and functional ornament. When, without any forethought, the dropping of a stitch revealed to the ancient Egyptian that it was not absolutely necessary to make a plain, regular weave, but that, by skipping some threads of the warp in running in the woof, an irregular diagonal effect would result, this accidental discovery, simple as it now seems to look back upon, gave the name " Alex- andrine weave " to irregular arrangements of warp and woof, and produced a pattern of adventition. Constructional ornament owes its development to the fact that oftentimes old methods of manufacture survive in pattern after they are no longer used. A weaver, for instance, makes a mat of thick ropes which he ties together with fibre of any kind. A surface pattern is the result. Later on, when, some other method being employed to make floor covering, there is no longer need of the primitive process, the surface pattern is copied simply because it is considered orna- mental. Functional ornament is perhaps, of the three, the most indicative of absence of thought in the interpretation of design ; the weaver or craftsman adding for ornament something that once stood for DESIGNS S 7 use, and which has become meaningless, having lost all semblance of the thought and need which called it into existence for a purpose. It will very soon become evident that that which we have already formulated and for convenience have called by names of our own selection is none other than historic ornament arbitrarily classified, and our thought lends itself to methodic arrangement in a way other than it could had we not already made independent discoveries. Our Oriental friends would hardly understand the nomenclature that we have adopted, for " historic ornament " is the name given by students to that which in the East is much more simply defined as " tribal pattern." When a pattern has been copied by one generation after another, it becomes " classic," and the original ideograph or symbol which antedates the pattern is known as " archaic." Tribal patterns are used on both coarse and fine rugs. The chief, or ruler, among nomad weavers, or the mo/narch of more civilized people, may order rugs made of the very finest materials possible, or such may be ordered as "tribute-rugs," and all these will have significant time-honoured tribal patterns. The weaver who for his ruler makes this costly rug may at the same time weave a coarse rug for his own private use of the same tribal pattern. Again, as nomad weavers migrate and settle in towns and villages they learn to use materials in a less crude way, so that we find tribal patterns in rugs in which the materials vary. Tribal patterns originally served to denote owner- 88 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK ship, and even now are used in remote places for the same purpose, fidelity to the traditional pattern being considered a distinctive virtue. Such designs are handed down from one generation to another by aged weavers, who draw in the sand the well-remembered details for younger workers to copy. Fragments of old rugs are treasured by those who possess them, and are laid aside to serve as samples for reproduction. There is almost pathetic reverence among Orientals for genuinely antique specimens of celebrated weav- ings, and an effort is being made by many modern commercial houses to have these old styles repro- duced rather than have the market flooded with European designs. BEL UCIUSTA X RUG Loanbd hy Tiffany Studios O K ■ es for the n being i her by a. i ll-rememb< gments •ssess them, and for reproductr among Orientals if celebrated weav- many modern ' ■■! styles repro- ,,VA /L :t flooded with \mhi\VY \j<$ foawjooJi '&$& o CHAPTER XIV WORLD-IDEAS Q t 1 Certain world-ideas which have given rise to many of the most significant symbolic patterns must be broadly considered before taking up each ornament in turn. The recognition of natural phenomena by each dweller on earth, wherever he may have lived and whenever he may have thought, gave rise to a wide- spread tendency to depict individual observations. In the " niche " in the rug-chart several of these world-ideas are suggested by their appropriate sym- bols, which seem to be of a class of their own and to have universal significance. Careful examination of the evolution of pattern shows that all symbols may, for our convenience, be divided into three classes, — 90 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK primary, secondary, and indefinite. The first, or primary, are those that were invented to stand for elemental phenomena, such, for example, as the earth, the sun, the rain, the stars, clouds, thunder and light- ning, and the wind, which were indicated in many places by the same general signs. The secondary symbols are those that show thought and imaginings about these natural things, and the manifestation of this thought differs in different localities. Indefinite symbols are those that illustrate human appeal from below to powers above, such an attitude of mind lead- ing to the establishment of creeds and religious belief, totem worship, and similar evidences of co-operation with Divine energy. By critical examination of symbols we may easily decide in our own minds to which of these divisions units of ornament originally belonged. For example, take the most simple and natural observation a human being could make. Man, finding in himself a centre, represented the earth as bounded by its horizon in the form of a circle, in which a cross with four arms indicated the four points of direction. Other primi- tive thinkers made a straight line to represent the earth, and a semi-circle over it for the sky. This Hiawatha taught his people: " For the earth he drew a straight line, For the sky a bow above it — White the space between for day-time, Filled with little stars for night-time, On the left a point for sunrise, On the top a point for noontide — And for rain and cloudy weather Wavy lines descending from it." R UG-PLA TE XI V ANTIQ UE KULAH RUG RUG-PLATE XIV ANTIQUE KULAH RUG (Oriental Expert's Description.) ' ^i HIS rug is over two hundred years old, and -*■ is an antique Kulak." Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. Author's Description In order to recognize the measure of success reached by the designer of this fabric, the rug must be studied from the apex of the prayer- niche, from which point it is evident that in the flowers that crown the tree form is shown an at- tempt to represent open blossoms deviating from a strict adherence to designs in profile which are very well illustrated in the conventionalized pink in one of the border stripes and edging the field. The oblong panels at top and bottom of the cen- tral panel, and the repetition of the same de- sign in the space penetrated by the prayer-niche, are strictly Ghiordez characteristics, and should be acknowledged as such when found in rugs of other makes. In colour the field is of dull blue below and a light blue above the prayer-niche, while yellows, tans, dove-colour, soft pinks and greens, are harmoniously blended in the designs upon a cream-coloured ground. u>aV-..« J i-. RUG-PLATE XIV WORLD-IDEAS 91 The sun, above all other subjects which furnished motifs for primary symbols, suggested early symbolic forms which have endured from the beginning of things. These gave rise to a vast number of second- ary symbols, for man's thought has never wearied in its effort to show respectful allegiance to the king of the sky, and many human contrivances for assistance in his long race, and for rest at its end were invented and symbolized ; for example, the " sun-boat," result- ing from the idea that as rain came from the clouds, a boat for the sun was necessary on occasion. Whatever the subject selected from natural phe- nomena, three attitudes seem to exist toward it when it is pictorially represented, — observation, reflection, and belief or creed. Man, observing that light, heat, and rain caused the earth to bring forth shrubs and trees, at first symbolized the observations, and later, after reflection, he so modified primitive symbols as to indicate his belief, thus producing a complication and multiplication of thoughts and ideas. Following closely upon the observation of light, its opposite, dark- ness was pictured in secondary symbols, and later the thought of co-operation with the great forces gave a number of talismanic symbols which were considered useful in appeasing the evil spirit of darkness and in worshipping the good spirit. The desirability of establishing means of communi- cation between earth and heaven led to all sorts of means to bring about desired results in human affairs, and every obstruction was removed that might hinder the approach of the Supreme Spirit. Trees were grown for His resting-place ; stones were erected for 92 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK sacrifices to Omnipotence; and, so that there might be ease of access and a direct passage made between heaven and earth, bells were jingled to stir the spirit spaces, flags were made to flutter in the wind, drums and clappers of various sorts were sounded on earth to awaken and call the attention of the Deity, and in the mutterings of thunder and the darts of lightning a divine response was recognized. The patterns that have existed for many centuries have almost invariably been evolved from primary symbols, and they alone are absolute, for as soon as speculation begins there is a mingling of motifs which interrupts all natural mental processes in the effort of interpretation. The inevitable effect of observation and reflection was to cause primitive men to adopt some sort of belief, and thus the early religions of the world were established. Some of the most important symbols seem to have had independent origin in each of the great creeds of the world ; others migrated from one to the other, and were finally adopted by European nations, who substituted Christian names for pagan and added the attributes of saints to those of heathen gods. Instead of taking up the study of each of the sym- bolic forms best known to antiquarians, or of trying to establish any of our individual theories, we must con- fine ourselves within the limits of our avowed purpose to study pattern analytically, and to trace the origin only of such as have survived in the ornament of obtainable objects. CHAPTER XV TURKISH RUGS With chart in hand we may here review the entire subject and endeavour to use the general considera- tions as mapped out, in the examination of as many- rugs as possible, presenting to ourselves the ster- eotyped questions about shape, size, possible use, materials, colours, methods of manufacture, style of ornament, and religious significance, that we may be led legitimately to demand of each object that it re- veals to us its nationality in spite of all that it may have borrowed from outside the boundaries of the land of its birth. We are not travelling in the Orient, where we might watch the busy fingers of native men and women tying with untiring patience gay knots of colour on the grey background of carefully strung warp. We cannot speak with conviction about the pots of colour used, or the way wools are washed and dyed, or even of the commercialism of to-day; but we have, in com- mon with all travellers and students, all that any one has about the past, every record, writing, hieroglyph, and account of exploration and discovery. All letters of travellers and descriptions of the doings of the mighty monarchs of ancient times are ours to-day, a common heritage ; and right in our hands, here in our 94 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK modern homes, we have the most significant of all art objects to assist us, — the Oriental rug ! When we first began to hear about Oriental rugs in this country they were called "Turkish" rugs. This was due to the fact that they were shipped from Turkey, and Constantinople became a prominent cen- tre, as still it is, for the sale and distribution of vast quantities of rugs and carpets. No matter where they were made, they were carried by land and sea and sold in either Constantinople or Smyrna. After a while, those who had learned more than others about the matter called all Oriental rugs " Smyrna " rugs, and this name was in vogue for years. Then we began to hear of "Anatolian" mats and rugs, and learned that they too were " Turkish," Anatolia being the name applied to Asia Minor. The three names, " Turkish," " Smyrna," and " Anatolian " served those who bought and sold until the names which applied to the country, city and province failed to satisfy those who wished to be more explicit, and travellers who went from place to place began to study the styles that were adopted by the weavers, whether they were nomads, villagers, or dwellers in towns, and we began to hear of " Kulah," " Ghiordes," " Ladik," " Konieh," and " Melace " rugs, of "Mosul" produc- tions and " Baghdad ,; weaves. Then, when com- mercialism seized European agents, alluring offers were made of carpets and rugs manufactured to fit any room, and large carpets were woven after designs furnished by the agents, who ordered the goods and forwarded money to erect looms large enough for the weaving of fabrics of extra size. Consuls were JEWISH EMBROIDERED LINEN SHOWING DESIGNS COPIED IN RUGS TURKISH RUGS 95 directed, by their respective governments, to look into the matter of weaving in the places where they were stationed, and now and then in newspapers and maga- zines we noticed the names, then new to us, of towns where the rug industry was stimulated by increased demand. In Turkish rugs before the middle of the last cen- tury, though the weaving was, as it has always been in western Asia, of coarse quality, the designs were native, the dyes pure, and the methods those that had obtained through the years. Soft blues, greens, yellows, and vivid reds were blended with a skill that gave subdued effects, though dealing with primary colours. The rugs that first came from Turkey were apt, in design, to follow the general form of the hearth-rug, in which the field of the rug was pointed at both ends. In antique Turkish rugs the chief characteristic, to which allusion was made in the chapter on classification, is the use of detached motifs of ornament, and such, repeated in certain portions of the rugs, produced in some cases an ornamentation that lost in art value because of its rigid adherence to symmetry. Effort to copy Persian designs gave rise originally to this style of decoration, but it has now become distinctive in Turkish productions and differs from anything else. The location of Asia Minor cannot be too often considered by those who are studying the products of Anatolia. Its nearness to Europe, and its position midway between the Orient and the Occident, have made its art sensitive to every subtle influence. It has been the birthplace of many of the arts. In needle- 96 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK work its women have always excelled, and much that has been accomplished by the needle has been copied in weaving. A close study of antique Asia Minor and Syrian embroideries, many of them the dowry linens of past ages, reveals a native style in treatment, and leads to recognition of the same in the adaptation of the designs to warp and woof. It is important that we dissociate Asia Minor and Syrian productions from those of the provinces that separate Turkey, from Persia — Mesopotamia, Kurdis- tan and Armenia, — so that we may be cognizant of the peculiarities in purely Turkish fabrics. For our purposes, therefore, we include in this division merely the country west of the Euphrates, where in hamlets and by wandering tribes, as well as by well-known weavers in towns given over to manufacture, rugs are woven and carried to one or another of the special markets for sale, where the goods are often given the name of the place where they are sold, to the exclu- sion of the name of the town or village where they were woven. This leads to great confusion in classification. Two influences of widely differing nature must be consid- ered in studying the fabrics of any chosen rug-produc- ing district of Asia. These are, first, the effect upon design of the spontaneous, unhindered thought of the nomad following his sheep and goats through the mountains, under the sky's wide canopy, with lack of all restraint and conventionality, including in the most irresponsible way anything in design which he picks up on his travels, weaving along with tribal designs all sorts of odd conceits. The second innV TURKISH RUGS 97 ence is that which bears evidence in fabrics to a long- continued use, in settled localities, of historic design. Without any knowledge of the migratory habits of the tribes, who have spread themselves all over middle Asia, we should be sadly confused in our study of ornament. It is for this reason that it seems wise to exclude from "Turkish" rugs those that bear such direct relation to Caucasian products that they are often mistaken for them. Turning from a careful study of a good atlas, upon which we may locate the already mentioned rug dis- tricts, to our own maps, we may enter the names speci- fied in our first classification of Turkish rugs, — Melace, Ghiordes, Konieh, Kulah,etc, — and, with typical illus- trations in hand, proceed to study the rugs of each district, and the special patterns that for some unac- countable reason have been adhered to in spite of the rise and fall of Empires under whose control the land has been for centuries. The whole of western Asia as well as Egypt and Morocco, should be included in any comprehensive study of Turkish textiles, for from a Mohammedan standpoint alone can the subject be properly grasped. The religion of the Turk has absorbed into itself the most meaningful of old Jewish symbols. Tracing its ancestry back to Abraham, it has a right to all the Hebraic traditions. To the Moslem as well as to the Jew belongs the six-pointed star, the " Ensoph " of the Chaldeans, and it is interesting to note its prev- alence in the art of Syria. In Turkey we may find traces of Greek, Byzantine, Persian, Rhodian, Roman, and Russian ornament. In fact it is in western Asia 9 8 THEOR1ENTALRUGBOOK that we find Chaldean and astrological influences in old designs, and so elemental in their significance are many Arabic, Syrian, and Asia Minor patterns that we may safely recognize the fact that the mind of the people who migrated westward from the heart of Mesopotamia had in it a conquering power which is felt in design to the present day. It is almost impossible to study the textiles of western Asia without some knowledge of the potter's art, for the two arts are more absolutely interdepen- dent in that region than in almost any other. Designs in the tiles and pottery of Damascus and Rhodes, in fact upon the enameled walls of mosques and tombs, wherever the Saracen travelled, may always be easily distinguished from the Persian, which in the vast majority of cases gave them birth. These enduring materials have been an unceasing fountain of supply to the workers in other arts, and an evidence of the thought-life of the people during the successive dom- ination of foreign and domestic rule. We sometimes find the designs upon enameled tiles copied in their entirety upon grave carpets, and, wherever the Moham- medan settled, the two arts, those of the potter and of the weaver, have been companions. There are, in truth, so many side-lights on the subject of design, that we are loth to leave any untouched. The quilted and applique decorations of Cairo and Damascus fur- nish the most useful means of analyzing ornament, for such free work can be done with the scissors and needle that each detail of a pattern is wrought out to perfection, and upon the inside of canvas tents one often finds a wealth of ornament to decipher. TURKISH RUGS 99 There are some styles of Oriental rugs that are generally classed as Mohammedan without regard to the nationality of the weavers, and under the name Hispano-Moresque (a term used in describing pottery made in Spain by the Moors by processes taught by the Persians), are grouped the productions of various countries where the religion of the Prophet has per- sistently held sway. An iridescence such as is at its best in some old " Melez " rugs of southwestern Asia Minor, whither the influence of Rhodes must have carried Persian suggestions, and also in some antique Cairo and Morocco gems, is traceable to a chemical mingling of colours in careless methods of dyeing and to the atmospheric effect of years of exposure. We frequently see in modern rugs an effort made to re- produce this iridescence by combining many different shades and strands of extremely fine wool in each knot so that the mottled effect produced might sug- gest the antique colouring. It is an interesting fact that a name which connects itself with the latest development of an art in a country far removed from its place of birth, will often establish itself in the vocabulary of the student, who, not knowing the original terms, will use the new word to describe the old process. Thus the name "Hispano-Mor- esque "suggests a Spanish process, whereas the art of lustre was originally carried from Persia to Spain by the Moslems long after its invention in Persia. To Byzantine influence many Turkish designs may be traced, and it is difficult to separate the mosaic patterns of Asia Minor from the geometric ornamen- tation of the Turcoman and nomad tribes, though the too THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK latter were ordinarily based on the study of natural phenomena upon which tribal pattern grew, and the former were copied directly from the mosaic work in stone which was forced into shape by the limitations of material. We also find among old Turkish patterns many that carry thought into the past, when Chris- tianity was first warring with the infidels ; and in the St. George and the dragon country Christian and pagan designs are often mingled, while to the north- east, Armenians, who claim theirs to be the oldest Christian Church, have so blended secular and religi- ous concepts as to cause the greatest confusion. Be- cause of the vast amount of conflicting evidence, the task of identification of objects is not easy, and yet we proceed with courage, as analysis will at least familiarize us with oft-used motifs, and in the laby- rinth of Eastern symbolism we may perchance find much to stimulate further research. The Oriental rug in an Occidental home is a very 1?V«frtti« fn different thing from what it is in Uurfctsb IRuos. the land of . its birth or even in the possession of a dealer, from whom one may often learn much in regard to its possible and, perchance, absolute ancestry. As a thing of beauty it has a right to exist, — it pleases the eye and serves its purpose in every way, even though we ask of it no questions and bring to it no response. The sunlight of the day and the shadows of the gloaming only increase and augment its charms. But when there come to us moments of interest in the history of Asia and of design, suddenly we are aware that in the material object before us we may learn to BUG-PI, ATE XI r v MELHAZ PRAYER-RUG fTTATK TBACHER* • AANTA BARBARA. CALIfORMtM 2±& HUG- PLATE XV MELHAZ PRAYER-RUG Size: 6.3 4 Loaned by Hadji Ephraim Benguiat Oriental Expert's Description u CT^HIS is a Melhaz prayer-rug. Melhaz is a -*■ city of great antiquity in Asia Minor, near the border, just opposite the island of Rhodes. Ancient rugs of this kind represent perfect har- mony of colours; the richest red in the centre, and the most beautiful shades of golden-canary and greenish-yellows composing the border. Exquisite shades of violet are also to be found in these rugs." Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. Author's Description We find in this Melhaz rug exceptional oppor- tunity to trace Mongolian influences which have been modified by Caucasian handling. Violet shades of rarest beauty and rigid adherence to tribal designs in the borders force themselves up- on us as diagnostic features in comparative study. The inner stripe of the border bears a device which identifies a specimen as Melhaz, since it is not as interchangeable among weavers asmany of the border patterns of Ghiordez and Kulah. The colours in this rug are light green, cream, moss, and yellowish-brown, red, and dark blue, with touches of light blue, pink, black, and lav- ender. The kaleidoscopic quality of the designs in old Melhaz knot-carpets is seen to perfection in this rug, which has a quality so rare that it stands by itself. RUG- PLATE XV TURKISH RUGS 101 detect evidences of thought, and we turn with new interest to that which lias long been a treasured possession, but has never before been either more or less than that. We learn from one skilled in deciphering patterns, hieroglyphs, and ideographs, that in western Asia, particularly in Syria and Arabia, the use of the equilat- eral triangle antedates the adoption of any other form in design ; that as a primary symbol it was used to in- dicate the most mysterious and occult belief of a people given to vain imaginings. We discover, in our intercourse with the Orientals who have adhered most absolutely to their native beliefs, that, however modern civilization may have forced upon them Euro- pean ideas, there come times to each and all when THE SEAL OF SOLOMON. THE SIGNET OF DAVID. inherited convictions alone satisfy and alone are regarded. In many years search I have found no sign, symbol, or design so frequently bound upon the body as a talisman as the triangle, and to it scores of Turkish patterns may be traced. The seal of Solo- mon, built on the right angled triangle, and the signet of David, based on the equilateral triangle show io2 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK relations of forms to each other which are most convincing to students who care to penetrate through the sign to that which it signifies. Turkish geometric patterns are largely indebted to the equilateral triangle for a fidelity to tradition which can readily be traced in designs. In some few rare old specimens of Asia Minor weaves, isolated fragments of many designs may be found. It is not always possible to trace to rugs themselves the designs which weavers have copied. In old embroideries, paintings, and manu- scripts are found evidences of the determination to hold to tribal and national ideas when decorating ceremonial art objects, and to these it is always most safe to revert in studying a design and tracing its evo- lution. In the analysis of any pattern which we are studying, it is wise, whether we be draughtsmen or not, to draw as carefully as possible the main outlines of border designs. Take, for example, any familiar Turkish border seen in old Ladik or Anatolian fabrics. A flower looks like a flower until, in endeavouring to trace it, we find it is composed of one square or triangle after another, and has, with utmost difficulty, been given floral form. On Rhodian tiles, pottery, and embroidery we find the ancestors of many patterns that have been thought to belong exclusively to Asia Minor, but which have evidently, through the Sara- cenic occupation of the islands of the sea, found their way into Anatolia, and have influenced geometric Turkish designs. The cross-stitch, so universally used in Greek and Russian embroideries, has perpetuated many meaningful designs, while in old lace and cut- work, patterns were forced to take rectilinear forms, TURKISH RUGS 103 but it is not difficult to distinguish between those that were deliberately based on squares and triangles and those which assumed angular forms because of the limitations of materials. We find that the design known as the " link," the " spiral," and by various other names, was first repre- sented as a combination of triangles ^. And in many old designs the two angles face each other without the connecting line ^- All through the western Orient this pattern can be found in fabrics, — in the borders of Asia Minor rugs and as detached ornament on the field of nomad weavings, — in some a mere " happen-so " arrangement and in others showing a definite use of it as a " sun motif." The spirals of Egyptian ornament are being studied very carefully by students who feel that their significance is far greater than was at first supposed. Recognition of these three variants of the design, the link, the sun motif, and the spiral, makes us cognizant of the fact that it was originally an interesting motif, and we may look for its appearance and learn to distinguish between the significant and the meaningless use of it. Until within a century or two the Orient has seemed remote, and the lay mind has not grasped the fact that in Turkey-in-Asia are native many of the designs known to us as European. Confusion has resulted, and many people, not interested in the study of Oriental rugs claim that the old patterns found in Sicilian silks and Italian velvets were inventions of the weavers of Europe, whereas in reality the Crusa- ders, on their return, introduced into their own lands all sorts of Oriental designs. Our knowledge of 104 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Italian and Spanish adaptations so far anteceded our interest even in the remote lands east of the Mediter- ranean that we have to unlearn much that we have hitherto accepted. It is surprising how true it is that the eye sees only that which it is trained to observe. Ask any dozen people to look at a rug, and then to turn from it and tell what they have seen. Almost invariably not one can answer so simple a question as " What form did the scroll take in the broad border design ? " In analytical study one sees that the meanders vary in rugs, and that in no better way can the individual handling of foreign motifs be detected than by follow- ing the development of the methods of forming scroll designs in rug borders. The Persian rug easily leads in naturalistic representation of the flowing vine, and upon recognition of old Iran perfection we may base our comparative study. Turkish treatment in the west, and Indian in the east, show widely differing means of accomplishing the same end. One cannot always tell to which division a rug belongs, because of the details of ornament ; but it is surprising how quickly the mind responds to the mental training, and the eye to the practice of looking for some definite thing. In certain rugs we find an easy adaptation of borrowed patterns, while in others it seems almost impossible for the weaver to accommodate himself to a new thought. The East Indian will crowd his vine motif into octagonal form and it is with difficulty that most weavers outside of Persia find it possible to carry the undulating line through an entire border without breaking it up into sections. Archaic, MUG-PLATE XVI LADIK PRAYER-RUG MUG-PLATE XVI LADIK PRAYER-RUG Size: 6.11 X4.9 Oriental Expert's Description " T/ffHEN this make of rug is so fine of texture * * and so artistically rich in colouring effects, as this is, in my judgment it is the finest rug gem that Asiatic Turkey ever produced, not barring even the finest Ghiordez rugs.'''' Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. Author's Description On a blue ground in the broad stripe of the border the Rhodian lily in shades of tan, yellow, and lilac is wrought. The colour effect is en- hanced by an outer stripe in which the ground is tan and an inner stripe of exquisite lilac which gives an extraordinarily soft combina- tion of red, yellow, blue and violet tints. An un- usually good opportunity is here afforded to study the broad border pattern which is here most simply rendered and was evidently copied by the weaver from archaic design. RUG-PLATE XVI * i TURKISH RUGS 105 classic, and tribal designs should be separated and classified by each individual student who wishes to verify for himself that which should be accepted only when it carries conviction with it. The arts are inter- dependent and explain and interpret each other. The history of art motifs and their migrations is as authentic as any record of the past. The antique Oriental rug (for only such can serve as type and standard) will awaken our interest in the past as few art objects can, and comparison with all other art manifestations will help us to comprehend much that at first seems enigmatical. ~ »_ , Under the general name of " Asia asiaflMiior ,-. » n ♦ .1 Minor rugs collectors gather rare specimens of old weaves that have made the Anatolian peninsula famous, and that have so distinguished its fabrics and patterns that there are certain features always similar in them, though the weavers of different localities lay claim of priority to either their invention or adoption. Such are plainly traceable to archaic and symbolic designs which were the common property of all alike. This accounts for the fact that in all rug-weaving localities at the present time recurrence is made to types that once obtained more universally than they do now. These designs come under the head of primary or symbolic orna- ment, for almost invariably they bear testimony to elemental phenomena, as water, star, and sun motifs prevail. This is not apparent at first glance, and one may study for years over Ghiordes, Kulah, Melhaz, and Ladik specimens before being able to see the evidence of local handling and craftsmanship which io6 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK differentiates one object from the other. The main features seem at first so much alike that we are tempted to cease all effort to subdivide until interested to do so, because methods finally force their pecu- liarities upon us, and we find that these primary symbols have been differently used by individual workers. With those Orientals who revere tradition and who cling to pre-Islam Hebrew thought and condi- tions manifested in old design, or to the Armenian handling of Christian truth, and to the rendering throughout Syria, Asia Minor, and Arabia, of prehis- toric conceptions of natural phenomena, there is a decided preference for archaic patterns which have always been used as types. It is rarely now that one is able to procure old specimens of ancient weavings, but such, when obtainable, are copied more or less accurately. Such also are modified by more modern methods of portraying the same thing, the straight line giving place to the curve when expert weavers, without meaning to do so, change the entire appear- ance of the patterns by their improved methods of workmanship. For purposes of comparison we may divide Turkish rugs into three groups, showing three stages in the designs of Asia Minor. In the first group we may look for early handling of the meander, which figures as an accepted Ghiordes motif. This zig-zag in the first, third, fifth, and seventh of the border stripes in rare old rugs was at first a simple water-motif an elemental design based on primary symbol. Later, in the second group, we TURKISH RUGS 107 find the same motif treated in a more decorative way as the " ribbon," and still later the floral meander marks the third group. The two latter designs of secondary import both show development in crafts- manship, knowledge, and beauty, but deviation from the elementary use of symbol. When the technical characteristics that force specimens into trade dis- tinctions coincide almost universally with our own conclusions, we feel it legitimate to trust ourselves to them, comparing what we have ourselves dis- covered from an Occidental standpoint with that which Orientals in full possession of knowledge of the fabrics themselves consider worthy of emphasis, and we become convinced that local treatment of design may be detected as well as the methods of manufacture. The Oriental rug proves all that is claimed for it to be true when it leads us to look into the history of the world's progress as it does in Asia Minor. Many of the places colonized by the Greeks bear evidence to the fact that the early Dorians were sun-worship- pers, and gave symbolic patterns to potters and weavers which have ever since been perpetuated, marking with virility and beauty many forms that had originally been carried into Europe from the Orient. Scholars who are tracing the migration of important symbols from the places of their birth are trying to separate the original thought from that which has been built upon it, and an excellent oppor- tunity is given us to follow their lead in the analysis of Turkish patterns. For example, the handling of all things Persian by the craftsmen of Damascus and io8 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Rhodes has given a strictly Rhodian style to which we must attribute many of the textile patterns that are deemed important by native students of Oriental art. Tracing the vicissitudes of the small island of Rhodes, where early sun-worshippers gave to designs the wave, water, and various sun motifs, it is easy to note the changes brought about by the fact that first one and then another conquering power controlled its developing art. Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Venetian, Persian, and Turkish influences made Rhodian art a combination of all others, and yet its mongrel nature assumed an individuality which has so marked its styles that Rhodian designs, copied in the neighbour- ing seacoast towns of Asia Minor may easily be dis- tinguished as different from any other rendering of distinctive designs that have in other ways reached the western shores of Asia. Thus old Rhodian inter- pretations of Greek classic designs in many of the wave patterns to which we have alluded have been adopted as borders in old Asia Minor rugs, and from these later styles have evolved. It is not claiming too much for the potter's art to assert that without it we should be deprived of many of the most beautiful conceptions of master artists, and of the ability to place designs accurately. Under the familiar names Ghiordes, Kulah, Melhaz (Milassa-Melace), and Ladik we may subdivide the Turkish division of the rug-chart, leaving to later study the less well known styles and types. With rugs in our hands to examine, how may we distinguish between the products of these four important centres? Antique specimens alone avail us as standards, and BOKHARA (TEKKE TURCoMAS) RUG Loaned by Tiffany Studios ■ AL I jOK n style to which ile patterns that lents of Oriental the small island of ;des, v tve to designs Hie un motifs, it is easy to note it by the fact that first ng power controlled its Byzantine, Venetian, made Rhodian art a id yet its mongrel nature •■hidi has so mar ked its \yS\\ (\Rfctt vAA'A^e^^TO^&ghbour- goifow&i \vu«\vi: \s$ine»omay easily be dis- 1 .. .i nv other rende ring of ways .reached Thus old Rhodian inter- ne designs in many of the have alluded have been [inor rugs, and from - It for the potter's art to 1 deprived of many master artists, and of curately. Kulah, Melhaz subdivide the I iving to later i types. With e distinguish rant centres? lards, and EST ^ ' P21 i' •ir-I imsiiM^i^ydyMy '»?>* « lAAftJkfti 30C .&!$&& , <> tail] *»»^ ,-<« ~ r H**f 30 ^"^ s.-^ ^-^ CS " s "^ ^ N^ TURKISH RUGS 109 such only should we consider while our opinions are in a formative condition. ObtOrbeS AS P ra y er - ru S s the most beautiful of TRims antique Ghiordes weavings have come down to us through the years, and a few of their main points are at once noticeable ; as, for example, the prevalence of many borders, the high OUTLINE MAI' OF WESTERN ASIA MINOR. prayer-niche, the plain colour of the field, and the pliable quality of the fabric itself. There are two ways of approaching a rug for study : one is to look upon it from a distance as it lies on the floor a number of feet away from us or hangs on the opposite wall ; the other is to stand in the centre of the object and look down upon and into the pile, no THEOR1ENTALRUGBOOK allowing the thought gradually to extend from the centre to its outer limits, studying in turn each of the borders and their relation to the whole make up of the fabric. For proper conception of the plan of old Ghiordes rugs it is essential to follow the latter method and look down upon the design. In the first place, when thus examined the mottled appearance of the plain surface shows rare beauty and a lustrous liquid quality. The borders that surround the central panel should each in turn be seriously considered, as in some of the smaller stripes there are flowing an- tique designs, while the broad main border, generally speaking, is rectilinear, filling an imaginary square with squarely drawn flower and leaf forms, so that in combination the flowers and leaves form distinct designs that are repeated again and again all around the rug. Though this style of ornamentation is cop- ied in different localities, it is always recognized as a Ghiordes feature. The colours of antique Ghiordes specimens defy description. In the most carefully made rugs the mottled effect of some of the solid coloured centres is produced by combining three or four strands of fine wool of varying shades of the same colour in each knot tied, and blues, light greens, and hay colours, with reds of gem-like clearness and white of ivory tint, mingle and blend rather than contrast with each other, so that, though there is no confusion, there is not the absolute distinctness that we find in the productions of the more easterly provinces of the Turkish empire. This it is well to note, for oftentimes at first glance this recognition of the distribution of colour will lead to the proper classification of fabrics. MUG-PLATE XVII KULAH RUG RUG-PLATE XVII KULAH RUG Size: 9.10 X4.3 Loaned by Hadji Ephraim Benguiat Oriental Expert's Description " jpUGS of this weave are "known as Kxdah rtigs in jtv Anatolia; but this specimen, being an original, teas made in the island of Rhodes under the same influences that caused the production of the famous Rhodian tiles and plates. For centuries it teas in a mosque in Kulah (a great rug-manufacturing centre) and has been reproduced by almost every ca- pable rug-weaver. In 1878 many reproductions could be obtained; but not until my last trip to the Orient in 1900 could I induce the possessors of these beautiful rugs to part ivith any of them for my collection." Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. Author's Description A novice is obliged to look very carefully at the floral ornamentation of antique Kulah rugs before be- ing able to distinguish them from others. We look to these antique specimens for explanations many and various, for in them are to be found evidences of a definite intention on the part of master-weavers to hand down classic and archaic designs. To our ana- lytical study they render slight assistance by any confession of distinguishing features. These antique Kulahs trace their ancestry to the island of Rhodes, and occasionally in these older weavings a motif will stand out as strictly speaking Rhodian ; such, for example, as the highly ornate rendering of the pink and the rose in flower forms, and a pectdiar semi- geometric scroll in the main border which is evidently intended to serve the purpose of the vine in the Persian designs from which many of the Rhodian patterns were copied. It seems as iho ugh an accepted method of producing this meander effect antedated the use of it in the Rhodian fabrics, and u-as copied without regard to whether or not it resembled a vine, for flowers project from it in awkward fashion, as though quite unrelated to it. RUU-PLATK XVII TURKISH RUGS in The outline divisions of Ghiordes rugs differ in form from other prayer-rugs in that at the base and above the prayer-niche there is commonly a panel into which is crowded an abbreviation of the pattern in the wide border stripe. These panels are generally surrounded by their own special border, which may or may not be like the narrow stripe that immediately surrounds the field. It is in Ghiordes rugs that collectors find their rarest specimens of the mosaic style of weaving so greatly admired, it being a time-honoured custom among the weavers to cut the knot-ends closely, and thus to preserve the semblance of well-worn fabrics that have been handed down as copies. In old Ghi- ordes rugs the warp and woof were fine in quality, and the materials were carefully spun and dyed, the sel- vages being so well and evenly completed that the rugs were symmetrical and shapely to a degree. The number of knots to the square inch varied from 36 to 81, and in the great majority of cases might be easily counted on the face of the rug on account of the close cut pile, which exposed the knot. In some old rugs intended for sacred purposes, use is made of the colour green allowed only to those in high office in direct line from the Prophet. Such green as seems to have borrowed its translucency from the deep sea, and its shadings from mosses and grasses, is seen to perfection in some of the old Ghiordes weaves, though a tendency to surface fading has softened the colours so that the sea shades obtain where the leaf tints disappear, and an aquamarine of unusual beauty is the result. There is adherence to the three primary ii2 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK shades, red, yellow, and blue, in all Ghiordes rugs ; but so soft are they that, while reds remain red and do not favour the crimson hues of other localities, they are so held in abeyance by the other tints employed that they are prized for their superior merit. So with the blues and yellows: the former a blue heavily laden with a whitish quality that, though it lightens, at the same time it preserves the primary tone; and the yellows do not assume the shades of hay, tan, and sun colour that some Kulah rugs affect. Altogether the rugs of Ghiordes name and make easily take rank among the finest of Asia Minor products, and as such may serve as standards of both merit and style. IkUlab Kulah rugs differ in a few minor points IRuaS ^ r ° m Ghiordes an d yet their peculiarities make it easy to distinguish between the products of the two places so near each other that it is surprising that any individuality at all has been pre- served. Ancient traditions in weave and design are in Kulah rugs, as in the Ghiordes products, best pre- served in prayer-rugs in which the prayer-niche is not as high as in the Ghiordes and is often serrated in a way that bears no resemblance to the ziV-zae outline around the field and prayer-niche in Ghiordes rugs, which is distinctly a water motif. In place of the wide central stripe a number of very narrow ones make up Kulah borders. Where these features are not noticeable it generally follows that neighbouring devices have been' borrowed, and that in describing specimens the prayer-niche is spoken of as having ' tall and modified angles like the Ghiordes " or as TURKISH RUGS 113 showing some characteristic feature of Ladik or Konieh weave. The careful cataloguing of Oriental rugs for auction sales and trade purposes has famil- iarized even those least interested with a vernacular which even five years ago did not exist, and the main points of interest are now known to all who care to make use of them for the furtherance of their studies. It is difficult to keep types firmly and definitely in mind when individual rugs present such mixtures and adaptations that it is hopeless to try to find for them any more definite name than the general one of the main division. Discouragement need not attend study and effort if one will only be content with ability to classify broadly until details make themselves evident and paramount. The most perplexing of old Kulahs are those which were made in close imitation of antique productions which in both form and design are strongly indicative of pre-Mohammedan and Per- sian influences. From these old so-called Kulahs certain motifs have been adopted by all Asia Minor weavers. Great effort is now being made by Orientals to obtain rare old specimens of these weaves which, judged by design, would be classed as " Kulah," " Ghiordes," or " Ladik." It is because of the great difficulties attendant upon all effort to say positively that certain things were made in certain places at definite times that the more conservative of judges group under the comprehensive heading of "Asia Minor " these rare old rugs which bear the same rela- tion to Turkish productions as " Iran " rugs to the output of the Persian looms. In colour the reds in old Kulah rugs are far from primary, and yet are not ii4 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK of the deep crimson so offensive in the modern pro- ducts of the dyer's ingenuity and experiment. A test of the beautiful red best known to those who aire for Melhaz and Rhodian products is one that may be care- fully applied by novices in their analytical study. If the thought of " magenta " comes to mind at first glance when examining a specimen, immediately class the rug as moderately modern, certainly not as an antique. There is something so convincing about the quality of red which as "crimson" or "rose" traces its ancestry back to a time prior to the " magenta " period, that one soon becomes susceptible to slight variations that make all the difference in the world between artistic and crude results. . . In the most southwesterly province of "* Asia Minor, Caria or Karia, many rugs are IKUQS. ma d e which bear the general name of Melez (Melhaz or Melace) because in the town of Melassa the productions of neighbouring villages are sold, and as is often the case, the name of the market is given to all things brought there for disposal. It has become quite customary to look for good effects in the colouring of old Melhaz rugs, and, while the weavings are not indicative of the refinement displayed by the craftsmen of the Kulah and Ghiordes districts, there is a certain virility and strength about the handling of materials, colours, and designs which appeal very strongly to one in search of these increasingly scarce qualities. A very careful distinction is sometimes made between the products of Asia Minor woven and used by the Greeks, and those made by workers of Hebrew ancestry. BUG-PLATE XVIII A SIXTEENTH-CENTURY GHIORDEZ RUG RUG-FLATE XVIII A SIXTEENTH-CENTURY GHIORDEZ RUQ RUG-PLATE X\ 111 TURKISH RUGS 115 These fine points, which are to be respected when we grasp the fact that they exist, are most valuable in analytical study of pattern. While yet it is not too late to do so, it would be most helpful to have gathered together in some place where they could be carefully studied, rugs and carpets that educated Orientals themselves will vouch for. European judg- ment is often based upon the verdict of some abso- lutely uneducated Turk, Persian, or Chinese of the lowest class, who, knowing nothing about the folk- lore or traditions of their countries, simply testify to the local habits of their own isolated home. Under the ban, oftentimes, of some proselyting religion which has made them afraid to express inherited beliefs, their testimony is not to be relied upon. There is much distress among those Orientals in Europe and America who are willing to sacrifice even opportunity to increase their wealth if they may in some way gather together objects made by their own people which will establish truths that seem destined to oblivion. From Asia Minor across the entire con- tinent to Japan in the far East, the truth is departing from real native art because of false Occidental opin- ions concerning it ; and it is for this reason that it seems important for us to study objects themselves analytically, ascertaining what they are like, and how they appear as they come to us like flotsam and jetsam after the great migration of other people to our land. Well may we protect the traditions that are all too swiftly passing away. In Turkish carpets of large size many styles are grouped under the trade name " Ouchak " in which n6 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK modern methods are observable. Often the wool used in the warp threads resembles worsted rather than yarn, while large surfaces are left plain, both to suit European ideas of preserving single-colour effects in furnishing, and because it requires less manual labour to make solid fields than to introduce or- nament. Almost without recourse to our maps we might locate the weavers of a great number of the rugs which come to us as Turkish, but which do not resemble, save in points of weaving, the productions of western Asia Minor. Nomadic influence is so evident in design that we should naturally attribute them to the rude mountaineers and villagers. As " Yuruck," as " Mohair," and as " Kurdish," we meet these rugs in classifications, and, while differing in cer- tain ways from each other and from textiles made further west, there are many points which mark them as Turkish ; while rigid adherence to tradition and the manifestation of belief, in pattern, shows the weavers to have been beyond the limits of the influ- ences that have produced so much that is mongrel in design. One can readily tell, when studying the rugs made by Mohammedans, to which sect the patriarch of the tribe belonged, by the choice made between patterns which exclude, and those which retain, animal forms ; it being clearly understood that if one makes an image of any living creature he will be called upon at the judgment-day to endow the same with a soul. Geometric and naturalistic ornament without addi- tion of human or animal forms may safely be con- sidered as sJiiah or orthodox Mohammedan. We TURKISH RUGS 117 have yet to learn more of the rugs of Syria and Arabia, which are often made in the purest tribal styles. At the great fairs held on feast-days, in various places in the district known best to us as the scene of Biblical events, many rugs are disposed of, and agents from trade centres secure the best of them, which are packed in bales and sent to Constantinople, whence, with rugs of better grade, they find their way to Occidental countries. Occasionally these odd bits may be picked up, and they rarely fail to interest those who are ever on the alert for traces of individ- uality in rug-weaving. The patterns that distinguish these crude specimens are called " memory designs," as they are handed down from one weaver to another, from mother to child. Frequently some definite patch or pattern testifies to the fact that the weaver, fearing the evil eye, has taken pains to provide some charm against disastrous consequences, for, if the object were too beautiful, the eye of envy might be turned upon it, and so the spot is arranged to avert that evil eye. There are certain chosen emblems that, worn as charms, are supposed to be most effica- cious as talismans ; among these are trinkets made in the shape of horns, human hands with the fingers in special positions, faces of animals, small pieces of metal and stone, and even cotton cloth, — these are cut into significant geometric forms which have had origin in ancient belief and have been copied again and again in patterns woven or embroidered in Syria. In the products of the seacoast towns on the east of the Mediterranean one meets a mingling of Egyptian nS THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK motifs in the ornamentation of fabrics. We find bird, beetle, and flower designs of extreme interest, and all sorts of sun, star, and moon emblems which are skil- fully wrought by weavers and embroiderers who have not the faintest idea of the legendary art they are perpetuating. 2lrabfait .Occasionally an "Arab rug" finds 1P its way to us as we are pursuing our analytical study of objects in this land so far away from the desert where the Arab camel- driver founded the religion that has made the name of Mohammed of world-wide import. Though puzzled by its crude workmanship, our interest is whetted when we are finally led by it into more critical study of Arabia as the home of tent-dwelling people, now as always; and memories of our childish imaginations accentuate our interest in the caravan-traversed pen- insula where once the Children of Israel wandered for forty years. We turn with renewed interest to Old Testament accounts of tents and tabernacles, and to our amazement find much which, critically read, carries us along to a comprehensive realization that the ancient Hebrews preserved for modern art more than is commonly supposed, and we learn from orthodox descendants of the Patriarchs that in Tal- mudic and Kabbalistic traditions we may find ex- planations which the student of art has loner been seeking. Such, for example, is the six-pointed star, known as the shield of David worn as a talisman by many who have not even questioned its meaning. This has furnished a whole system of religious belief TURKISH RUGS 119 for peoples who have migrated into Europe, and in various places have dwelt and are dwelling as gypsies and wanderers who profess to read in geometric forms the fates that control human lives. In macuc squares, magic circles, magic star-forms built on the equilateral triangle, are many designs that show a belief in the Divine answer to Man's thought when under the silent sky he erects his rude altar and awaits the recognition of Deity. Of modern Asia Minor carpets we find it safe to say very little, as they defy the purposes of the student who wishes to analyze patterns, for weavers are catering to the demand of the present day for " Turkish carpets warranted to fit any space in Occi- dental homes." However good such are, — and many of them are thoroughly well made and sold by reliable firms, — they do not come within the limits of our avowed purpose of studying rugs as things of sentiment and for their art value. Until we have made ourselves thoroughly acquainted with all that we can discover in the study of types in which are the authentic renderings of historic design of symbolic significance, we should not trust ourselves to do more with the productions of modern human machines than to buy them for utilitarian purposes as most desirable floor-coverings. To those who handle and dispose of such either in the Orient where they are made, or in any of the great markets of the world, we may safely look for much information concerning trade classifica- tions, and we may unreservedly admire the well- organized effort to secure the best work from weavers i2o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK who, if not backed by capital and controlled by intelli- gence, would be unable to supply the demands of Western buyers. But we cannot, however, hope to study ornament in its purity in these modern rugs, however beautiful they may be, unless we are so familiar with types in their purity that we can distin- guish for ourselves how faithfully they have been adhered to in the textile designs of to-day. When we know for a certainty that designs are being fur- nished by young men and women in London and New York, which are sold to agents and distributed freely to Asiatic weavers, we may well hesitate to base an opinion on rugs as manifestations of thought. TEbe travel Among the most interesting of Mo- ot tbe hammedan observances is the annual 1bOl£ Carpet pilgrimage from Cairo to Mecca for the purpose of carrying there the covering for the " Kaaba," or " House of the Sacred Black Stone." In the centre of the court-yard of the mosque at Mecca stands the sacred building, which is so revered by the followers of the Prophet that each loyal soul desires to accomplish the pilgrimage to the Holy Place once during a life time. One who has made this journey is allowed to call himself henceforth " Hadji," and the performance is one for which the pilgrim is revered. Abraham and Adam share the honour of having received from the angel Gabriel the small sacred stone, as a gift from Paradise, to contain which the original temple was built. Traditions are attached to the re- building, once in so often, of this holy edifice, and every detail of its history is treasured and has been immortalized in the ornamental art of Islam. < u u < TURKISH RUGS r 2 i The stone, about 6X8 inches, which was originally white, is now black because of the stain of sin imposed upon it through centuries of touch of unworthy hands, and the pilgrims make it a duty to circumambulate it on account of its magic power to remove all taint of sin. The outline form and the various features of the mosque at Mecca, the " Kaaba," the sacred well, etc., furnish now, as they always have done popular designs for textiles. Anything and everything about that which happens within the precincts of the Holy Place is of moment to those whose whole lives have been spent in anticipation of the journey thither, and whose future will be blessed by its accomplishment. The covering for the Kaaba is renewed every year. It is made of a heavy black silk damask lined with cotton, as it is contrary to the laws of the Koran to use anything which is made entirely of silk. About the covering, which is called the " Kiswah ", is a broad band decorated with inscriptions in gold and green, and this highly ornamented fabric is carried in state from one part of Cairo, where it is made by the same family year after year, to another part of the city, where it remains until entirely completed, and thence it is transported on the back of a sacred camel to the Holy City. The old covering, which is each year removed to make place for the new one, is cut into scraps by those who have the matter in charge, and these are sold or given away to the pilgrims, who so highly esteem the treasures that they carry the bits back to their homes, where they serve as markers for their Korans or as ornaments in their turbans. Many i22 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK votive offerings are sent by dignitaries to the mosque at Mecca — carpets of rare beauty, and mosque panels of various sorts. The designs in some of these beautiful rues and embroideries have been copied and reproduced through the years, and some of the choicest relics have, from time to time, been sold at a price. The commercial opportunities afforded by the pilgrimage to Mecca have always been most highly prized, and large revenues have been gathered from the pilgrims by those in charge of the mosque and sacred objects, as well as by those who go to meet the enthusiasts at different points along the route, where they may buy and sell to their own great profit. All through the Orient, pilgrimages are made to one or another of the various holy cities made sacred because of the presence of the tomb of some saint, or on account of some great happening in the past. There are seven places considered sacred to the pious Mohammedan, and to them pilgrims journey at all times. " In the order of their sanctity are Mecca, where Mohammed was born; Medina, the burial place of the Prophet; Nejef, on the Euphrates, where Ali was martyred ; Kerbela, on the banks of the same great river, where the earth is so sacred that bodies are brought by caravans for burial there in hundreds every year ; Kazemein, the village close to Bagdad, where stands one of the loveliest of all mosques; Meshed, the holiest of all the cities of Persia, with its glorious golden-domed mosque ; Samara, in south- east Russia, reckoned sacred by the western Tartars ; and Kum, a village in Persia, near Teheran, revered by all Persians, but little known to the outside world."* *"St. James Gazette." TURKISH RUGS 123 At the present day, modern methods of travel and changes of one kind and another have made it less possible than formerly to speak with confidence about that which occurs, for it is not now true that one year but repeats and perpetuates the past. Very few Europeans are supposed to have ever gone on the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, and one of these Sir Rich- ard Burton has given us the most interesting account of what he witnessed after the arrival of the caravan at the end of its long journey. Robertson, the royal historiographer, in the following words, describes the caravan travel of a century ago : " I will now enter into a detailed description of the caravans which visit Mecca. The first is the caravan which takes its depar- ture from Cairo in Egypt, and the other from Damascus in Syria, and I select these both because they are the most considerable and because they are described by authors of undoubted credit who had the best opportunities of receiving full information concerning them. The former is composed not only of pilgrims from every part of Egypt, but of those which arrive from all the small Mohammedan states on the African coast of the Mediterranean, from the Empire of Morocco, and even from the Negro kingdoms. When assembled, the caravan consists of at least 50,000 persons, and the number of camels employed in carrying water, provisions, and merchandise is still greater. The journey, which in going from Cairo and returning thither is not completed in less than a hundred days, is performed wholly by land ; and, as the route lies mostly through sandy deserts or barren uninhabited wilds which seldom afford any subsistence, and where often no sources of water can be found, the pilgrims always undergo much fatigue, and sometimes must endure incredible hardships. "The caravan from Damascus, composed of pilgrims from almost every province of the Turkish empire, is little inferior to the former in number, and the commerce which it carries is hardly less valuable. This pilgrimage was performed in the year 1741 by i2 4 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Khojeh Abdulkurreem. He gives the usual route from Damascus to Mecca, computed by hours, the common mode of reckoning a journey in the East through countries little frequented. It is a singular proof of the predatory spirit of the Arabs, that, although all their independent tribes are zealous Mohammedans, yet they make no scruple of plundering the caravans of pilgrims while engaged in performing one of the most indispensable duties of their religion. " Great as these caravans are, we must not suppose that all the pilgrims who visit Mecca belong to them ; such considerable additions are received from Persia, from every province of Indostan and the countries to the east of it, from Abyssinia and from various states on the southern coast of Africa, and from all parts of Arabia, that when the whole are assembled they have been computed to amount to 200,000. In some years the number is farther increased by small bands of pilgrims from several interior provinces of Africa, the names and situations of which are just beginning to be known in Europe. " Besides the great caravan which proceeds to Cairo, and is .joined by pilgrims from every part of Africa, there are caravans which have no object but commerce, which set out from Fez, Algiers, Tunis, Tripoli, and other states on the sea-coast, and penetrate far into the interior country. Some of them take no less than fifty days to reach the place of their destination. As both the time of their outset and their route are known, they are met by the people of all the countries through which they travel, who trade with them. Indian goods of every kind form a considerable article in this traffic. " As the journeys of the caravans which are purely commercial do not commence at stated seasons, and their routes vary accord- ing to the convenience or fancy of the merchants of whom they are composed, a description cannot be given of them with the same degree of accuracy as of the great caravans that visit Mecca. But by attending to the accounts of some authors, and the occasional hints of others, sufficient information may be gathered to satisfy us that the circulation of Eastern goods by these caravans is very extensive. t-l z w a, w ■Jl o < w Pi OS r- 1 Pi o P4 TURKISH RUGS 125 " The same intercourse was kept by the provinces in northeast- ern Asia with Indostan and China; and among the numerous tribes of Tartars, even those which retain their pastoral manners in greatest purity, the demand for the productions of India and China is very considerable. In order to supply them with these produc- tions, caravans set out annually from Boghar, Samarcand,. and several other places, and return with large cargoes of Indian and Chinese goods." * It is recorded that Mohammed, becoming jealous of the progress of Christianity, was anxious to outdo the older religion in every way possible. In order to secure a large number of converts, he determined to attack the various caravans as they approached Mecca, where he dwelt, and where, all through the centuries, pilgrims had gathered. At the point of the sword he demanded allegiance, and threatened death to any who refused. In this way he terrorized many who avowed their purpose to yield to his claims, and thus he added to his followers, and finally sent converts every- where to spread his teachings. From time to time certain rugs find their way into collections, which are called " Mecca" rugs, and there are various reasons for the use of this name. A " Mecca" rug is one that has been made for or by an individual for his own pilgrimage, and it is custom- arily of the finest materials and bears the choicest of tribal and national designs. Such are handed down in families as heirlooms, and are sometimes cut up in small pieces and distributed to different members of the family of the pilgrim at his death. Vast num- bers of Shiraz rugs have been used for pilgrimages * " History of the Ancients of India," London, May 10, 1791. 126 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK which have in this way obtained the right to be called " Mecca " rugs. Besides the rug, which is personal property, each pilgrim who performs the journey to the Sacred City, is apt to take with him choice specimens of family or tribal weavings to sell for the high prices obtained there, or at seaport towns east and west of the city itself. These rugs are also called by purchasers " Mecca " rugs, and they were apt to be very beauti- ful before the spirit of commercialism seized the people of the Orient. In still another way the name is applied by connoisseurs who wish to describe the great beauty of a bit of antique weaving. They say "The rug is a gem, and a genuine Mecca," — just as Orientals will speak of a valuable Persian weave as an " old Iran " without attempting to say when and where it was made. This careless use of the word has given erroneous impressions to many who have supposed that genuine "Meccas" were made in the Holy City. This, however, is not the case. A consideration of the reasons for certain forms of present-day worship invariably carries the student of ornament back to a period prior to all that is custom- ary to-day, and specialists everywhere are devoting themselves to the task of making connections between that which is and that which was and no more valu- able contributions can be found to serve as repositor- ies for silent unintentional testimony than antique Oriental rugs in which remain designs which were originally based on symbols. In their accounts of pilgrimages to Mecca, travellers lay special stress on the fact that the worshipper must go around the sacred TURKISH RUGS 127 stone, and this harks back to the old sun-worship of people in that part of the world, and to various forms instituted by them. The circular movements practised by devotees of all religious systems from Arabia to China have given easily recognized forms based on the primary symbolic representations of the sun, the solar disc, the circle, the wheel, etc. The old Assyrian winged globe and the Buddhist praying-wheel both testify to early belief in the movement of the great god-sphere through the heavens, and are closely copied in both ancient and modern textile designs. The wheel has two distinct forms of expression in ornament, — one the evolution of the floral, and the other of the geometric style. Buddhist handling of the thought has given us lotus forms, and western Asian methods the various star forms which have found fullest development in Caucasian designs, and which have now, it is needless to say, become but empty pattern. In sun symbols, showing the intention of the designer to indicate revolution, are found, painted upon pottery and woven into textiles, the szvastika inside the circle, and sometimes the cross with equal arms. The circle vies with the scroll and S form for popularity in representing the sun. Winged circles, both Egyptian and Assyrian, sometimes show flame motifs, either within the circle or emanating from it, and modern pattern-makers constantly revert to these old classic and archaic designs in the present-day reproductions. In Scandinavian and Norse ornament are found borders which are full of significance, and which unite the theories about several distinct variants of the best- 128 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK known sun motifs. Through this most interesting use of pattern, and in designs that at first do not plainly manifest their origin, we are led to a recognition of features indicative of secondary as well as primary symbols. The human intention to assist the great hero in his journey, and to provide sun chariots and sun boats, is demonstrated in the art of Asia Minor and eastern Europe wherever Turkish rule has been established. By the skilful use of colour the outline forms in many fabrics are entirely concealed, and in this way the rare ability of the Oriental weaver is evinced. The boldest patterns are softened and blended by changing the background from time to time, so that all thought of stiff design is eliminated, and the mar- vel of beauty confounds our Occidental senses. It is perchance because the art of Asia is so old that it is possible for it to embrace both the most remote and realistic expression of man's mind, and at the same time every fantastic dream that has delighted mediae- val and modern interpretation of design. MUG- r LATE XIX GHIORDEZ RUG MUG-PLATE XIX 'J GHIORDEZ RUG Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Oriental Expert's Description SIXTEENTH-century Ghiordez rug." S. S. Costikyan. Author's Description We are led by the great beauty and wealth of ornament in this rug to notice the over-elabo- ration and heavy nature of a design which has drawn inspiration from many sources. The ground in each of the border stripes is so well covered that the plain ground of the central panel is in strong contrast, and noticeably re- lieves the design in its entirety. The rug is of "■mosaic" nature in weave, and is a superbly beautiful specimen. «1U«U*W" J £* X — *Q W Id »: o ID tH |D u co CO CO REGION OF THE GREAT RIVERS 137 coins and medals have done much to lighten the task of the student of symbol, who finds in old Ispahan rugs various renderings of the vine and fig, and may now identify them with classic and archaic repre- sentations of the sacred tree, — sacred because its gifts to man were supposed to come direct from the gods. In China there grows a species of palmate-leaved tree upon which the Fung-hwang is supposed to feed. Again and again we find this tree woven in Persian as well as in Chinese fabrics, and, true to tradition, the sacred bird hovers near it and establishes the truth concerning it. The mulberry-tree, because of its service to the silkworm, has furnished art motifs which have been perpetuated in Mongolian fabrics, as have the three cone-bearing trees, — the cypress, the yew, and the pine. The cedar and the willow have both been highly developed in the art of Cathay, but it is to a mythical tree that we look for the most interesting arborescent development in that country. Near the palace of Si Wang Mu grows the tree whose fruit grants immortality to him who can secure it ; for only those favoured by the fairy queen dare to make demand for it. This tree grows beside the sea of Jade, and its flower, fruit, and leaf are found in tex- tile fabrics. A tree which is believed to be typically Chinese is called the calendar-tree, and upon it a leaf is supposed to grow each day for the first fifteen days of the month, and then each day for fifteen days a single leaf falls. The eagle-tree is also a Chinese product, and that tree is guarded by two birds, who fight the attack of a 158 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK dragon monster who attempts to steal the fruit and kill the birds. The stories about these various trees, though mythi- cal, are very absolute, and it is surprising how often in the rugs of Persia these Mongolian devices are met with. Upon the calendar-tree stars instead of fruit tip the ends of the branches, and often take the shape of well-known constellations. In the brocades and grenadines with which the Chinese clothe themselves are found designs that still remain absolutely true to tradition, often showing to which of the religions of China the weaver is a devotee. These devices appear also in old and modern rugs, and, while they are yet unspoiled by outside influence, should be studied and interpreted. Si Wang Mu's mythical tree of immor- tality is supposed to grow in the Taoist heavens, and is unlike any paradisaical tree described in Buddhist legends. Ancient Taoist tradition testifies to the be- lief that upon a high mountain grows a tree by which men may climb from earth to heaven, and this tree in art is not unlike the calendar-tree, only that it is always represented conventionally, with mountains at its base. Gem-trees, upon which various sorts of stones and jewels were clustered in the shape of fruit, suggest the tree of life in the Garden of Eden which bare " twelve manner of fruits," and these beautiful THE TREE IN HINDU MYTHOLOGY AS SOMETIMES COPIED IN FABRICS. REGION OF THE GREAT RIVERS 139 objects are often pictured in rugs of the Ferraghan district, in which old designs are being reproduced. Japanese tree-worship is strongly tinged with Buddhist thought, and the spirit within the tree is poetically fancied and ardently courted and addressed. Written messages tied to the branches of the tree are supposed to reach the resident god, and fanciful thoughts regarding the counterpart in Paradise of the most beautiful trees on earth are instigated and nur- tured by contemplation and reverie. Branches of trees were and are used in all Eastern worship, not merely for decorative purposes, as we use them, but with significance. The willow wand is used as a talisman to keep off evil in China ; the bam- boo twig serves numberless beneficial ends ; and the pine, as an emblem of longevity, accompanies all illustrations of the genii who are thought to dwell in a land where the sacred tree flourishes. Tied to the branches of trees, and made fast to magic wands which are planted in the supposed pathway of gods and goddesses, are the prayers of those who believe in direct communication with the Divine. The Path of Prayer. " Among the gnarled pines of old Japan, That shade a hill where patient crickets sing, I chanced upon a hidden path that ran Upward beneath a mystic covering. " A hundred gates the sacred pathway keep, Mere stems of red with one straight beam across, In rigid angles mounting up the steep, Their scarlet hue bepatched with ancient moss. i 4 o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK " And springing from the mould on every side, Like ghosts of grass that march in pilgrim band, Grew fluttering papers written all and tied As banners pendant from a mimic wand. " I wondered long, when from the drowsy wood A whisper reached me, ' 'Tis the Path of Prayer, Where nightly Kwannon walks in pitying mood To read the sad petitions planted there.' " — Mary McNeil Fenolossa. Travelling westward across the Himalaya Moun- tains, we find in the Hindu cosmogony a different form of the tree, and one that in every way suggests the tree of life. The branches, whatever they be like in form of fruit or foliage, are filled with birds and animals, and rustle with the spirit of creation. Grow- ing out of the chaotic conditions at the centre of the earth, the Hindu tree is supposed to be watered by the great rivers, and to bear seeds of all sorts which are carried hither and yon by birds, so that the earth may bring forth plants, trees, and herbs for the sus- tenance of mankind. The drink called soma was derived from the leaves of the Hindu tree of life, and it so quickened the intellect that knowledge was added to the attributes of the wonderful tree. Wherever these ideas originated, and however they may have migrated all over the Orient, we constantly find expressions of them and it shows a lack of knowl- edge of the universality of the belief in the sacred tree to call every tree in ornament by the same name, — " the tree of life." The influences so far described have their manifes- tation in the countries east of Persia, and it is wise to i.THIBETAN " TREE-OF-TEN-THOUSAND-IMAGES ", 2. LEAF OF "TREE OF-TEN-THOUSAND-1MAGES", 3, 4 .5- TREES AND FRUITS COPIED IN TEXTILES, 6. TREE-FORMS COPIED IN PERSIAN RUGS REGION OF THE GREAT RIVERS 141 draw the line somewhat abruptly right here, and to speak of Mohammedan ideas about the sacred tree, and then we may intelligently distinguish between Arabian and Mongolian devices when they appear in Persian fabrics. The fruits and the rivers of the Mohammedan Par- adise promise most alluring and attractive delights, and in the trees the " green birds " hover in which the souls of the righteous are supposed to lodge. In an old Ispahan carpet of rare beauty and quality the birds are portrayed as flying in constellations which, held within cloud-bands, are twined in the branches of the tree of paradise. All sorts of mythological ideas are given form in Arabian tree devices. We find the zodiac-tree, which bears stars upon its twelve branches, and the tree of punishment, upon the extended arms of which appear the heads of animals. In strictly decorative art the tree takes vine-like characteristics, and birds standing on either side of it destroy small serpents which seem to be attacking the roots. This device is not unlike an East Indian rendering of a design which demonstrates the belief in the ability of the peacock to destroy serpent life, and in either one or the other direction the idea must have migrated. It would be impossible in an ordinary lifetime to learn one half of the myths of Islam, but nevertheless it is surprising how many reveal them- selves in designs on rugs even to our limited knowl- edge. Those relating to trees mention the tooba tree, which is described as being so large that the fleetest horse could not gallop around it in a hundred 142 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK INDIAN ARRANGE- MENT OF TREE IN DESIGN. years, or from one end of its shadow to another. It bears dates, grapes, and all manner of fruits. Should it be desired, its branches will yield the flesh of birds and animals, and clothes of green silk will burst from its blossoms, and beasts to ride on. The lotus- tree, depicted as " upon the utmost limit of created things," appears in illustrations, in silk carpets, of Mo- hammed's journey to heaven. Only as far as that tree of somewhat mysterious shape and nature could the Angel Gabriel go with the Pro- phet, and according to the fancy of the weaver this so-called lotus-tree figures in design and fabric. In the carpets of Persia we discover a mixture of legends. In old Kerman and Ispahan designs, many of which are being copied in the newest of silks to-day, are portrayed Mohammedan angels in Mongolian clouds hovering over easily recognised Persian tree and plant forms. The mingling of religions has made it impossible to draw the line accurately between the decorative emblems and symbols which record man's belief, but in the Oriental rug there is more fidelity to motifs that have import and significance to individuals, than in any other art object possible for us to handle. The cypress-tree of Persia, as it originally figured in the belief of the fire-worshipping people as the em- blem of Zoroaster, casts its shadow over many of the most treasured specimens of Iranian looms. Pointing ever upward with unerring directness, the cypress-tree REGION OF THE GREAT RIVERS 143 is reverenced as a symbol of immortality and is pic- tured in both crude and highly elaborated styles. As a design it was used naturally in mosque and grave carpets, when such were made for native use ; but now, with loss of meaning, it has become a very popu- lar motif in modern rugs, as it is always artistic and generally an easy design to work. One of the most interesting examples of the mixture of ideas and TREE FORM IN INDIAN ORNAMENT. liUDDHA MOSQUE, AHMEDABAD. styles was demonstrated not long ago in a moderately old Ispahan rug, in which the cypress-tree as main design was drawn so as to show a series of overlapping leaves, on each of which characters were written in almost exact reproduction of the design on the leaves of the Buddhist "tree of ten thousand images," which are supposed to have magic power and to be written upon by the gods. 144 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK In architecture and the decorative arts one finds the cypress-tree so often used that we can readily examine its details and determine whether or not it is true to tradition in shape and proportions. Hammered into brass and silver its form stands eloquently true to ancient belief, even when handled by unthinking artisans to-day, who, because they desire to put upon their lotas, or drinking-vessels, something that has honourable significance, decorate with the cypress- tree these articles of everyday use. Of no figure in ornament can it be said more truly than of the tree that it is easy to distinguish between the literal and the poetic representation of it. When it appears, as it does in the Buddha window at Ahmedabad, as ornament merely, we find that the most poetic imagi- nation has given rise to as graceful a form as was ever devised, while an attempt to picture a tree of knowl- edge, a tree of evil, or a tree of life leads to a gro- tesque representation from which art-lovers naturally shrink. Only by frankly admitting this can we sum- mon courage to examine the woven horrors that aesthetic taste eschews. As the soma-tree provided a drink for the Hindu gods, so in Persia the sap of the haoma-tree yielded the same sort of beverage and granted immortality. Leaves of these sacred trees are even more often represented in art than the trees themselves, and the significance of many of them is more thoroughly understood than formerly. The much-talked-about palm-leaf has fluttered down upon the fabrics of all peoples, and one student after another has gleaned his quota of information about it to add to the VARIOUS FORMS OF THE TREE IN DESIGNS TAKEN FROM EMBROIDERED TEXTILES AND Rl'ciS REGION OF THE GREAT RIVERS MS general mass of opinion. At least we have discovered that many forms were called in Europe "palm- leaves " when they were first noticed upon chintzes and shawls that were brought from the Orient by early travelers, and so the name was popularly applied to all leaves, in ornament, with twist or gourd-like termination or ap- pendage. Our little knowledge has been greatly to our disadvan- tage, and many are obliged to admit that they have inadver- tently perpetuated error by fail- ing to notice the difference between the forms with which textiles are ornamented. The palm-leaf in design has within a few years been very care- fully considered by students and writers, both in Europe and America, who have given names to its various forms, that have been so universally adopted that it is both courteous and desirable to accept them as descriptive. The form known to us as the " palm-leaf " was originally fraught with religious meaning, and in its simplest rendering followed the outline shape of the cone, which, as the fruit of a sacred tree, served as an emblem of immortality and was VARIOUS LEAF FORMS FOUND IN RUGS. 146 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK revered by the ancients. Its winged seed hidden in the cup-shaped sections of the cone was without doubt pictured as surmounting the form far oftener than we think, and sculptured evidence is supposed to point to the fact that the cone itself was burned in re- ligious worship. As students of orna- ment, our task is to learn to distinguish between forms as they appear, and never to try to twist or turn in a speculative way that which is, into what we would most like it to be, in order to prove our theories. Taking from known objects various renderings of the palm-leaf in ornament will so quickly train the eye to note the difference between leaf, fruit, and composite forms, that one will soon stand possessed of personal convictions which he may apply in his analytical study. In Chinese fabrics we find a repre- sentation of an almond leaf, and also one of a design based on a section of the mythical fruit of immortality, in both of which shapes ceremonial pottery was formerly made. Among Canton and Nankin porcelains taken in old times river-loop de- to Europe were leaf-shaped dishes SIGNS IN EAST ... ..... . , indian which were so enthusiastically received textiles. that they were finally made in China for commercial purposes, and few sets of blue 01 'f Q ®\ & ©\©\ ©' REGION OF THE GREAT RIVERS 147 CROWN-JEWEL WORN BY SUA II ABBASS THE GREAT. and white " India ware " * lack side-dishes of this sort. The palm-leaf in India has given outline ornamen- tation to various floral forms contained within its conventionalized limits, and whole stories of root, plant, leaf, and blossom are found in the composite figures that are distributed freely in the ornamentation of all sorts of East Indian art objects. Sometimes gourds furnish motifs in Eastern patterns, and their roughened, warped surfaces have decorative qualities which the art-worker quickly recognizes. Almost all things sacred are pictured in the art of the mystery-loving East Indian ; and whether or not in the long ago, the pilgrims to the sacred mosque in the mountains, that bound the Vale of Cashmere endeavoured to reproduce in ornament the remembered beauty of the peaceful winding of the river upon which their weary eyes feasted at the end of their long jour- ney, cannot be definitely proved, be- cause the pattern now known as the " river-loop " is older than any living weaver, however skilfully, it may be reproduced at the present time. In Persia the palm-leaf takes every VARIOUS FORMS < IF CROWN-JEWELS THAT HAVE BE) N CO IT EI) IN DESIGN. * So called because carried by the East India Company to Eng- land. 148 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK possible sort of flower, fruit, cone, flame, and com- posite form. It is fantastically arranged in the rug designs of Khorassan province in eastern Persia, sym- metrically distributed upon the field of Shiraz weav- ings, and in unrelated fashion finds representation in both border and field designs in western Persian and Trans-Caucasian fabrics. There are two ways of studying each of these forms, and both are necessary. We should trace first the outline and then the make-up of each figure. In this way we begin to notice that whole tree and plant forms are often contained within the ornate boundary of the leaf itself, and gems and jewels are skilfully copied in knots of lustrous silk and wool. The crown-jewels of Persia, as also those of India, have been accurately reproduced in ornament, and are thought by many to be easily discoverable in Oriental rug designs. True it is that there are those among so-called palm-leaf forms that seem composed of jewels, and the term " jewel-palm ' has found its way into catalogues, where it may be sure of an en- during fame to which it has more right than some are willing to admit. It is impossible to determine with absolute certainty the origin of the " palm " or " seal " pattern which figures in two ways in rug designs one where the whole hand appears in outline ; the other which des- cribes the curve of the bent little finger and the side of the palm of the hand. When casually observed, both of these patterns are erroneously classed as palm-leaf patterns, but tradition and the testimony of many Orientals,who know what it is to covenant and seal with blood, urge the belief in the primitive symbol REGION OF THE GREAT RIVERS 149 from which the design has evolved. To dip the hand in human blood and with it press a document by way of making signature, is a custom well known in the East, and one that is recorded on old parchments and copied in classic and tribal patterns. " And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." Be- lief in this idea originated the cus- tom of depicting all sorts and kinds of fruit as growing upon the sacred tree, and about the natural fruits of the Orient and their curative and stimulating properties more of in- terest is being discovered every year. Pits, seeds, and stems have each and all, with the outlines of cross-section cuttings of the fruits, given motifs for tree and fruit forms, and beyond all that it is possible to prove we find at last that the imagination of the weaver has blossomed on all sorts of woven imprint of side of CLOSED HAND SUG- trees and taken shapes and cliarac- gestive of talm- teristics unlike anything natural. LEAF DESIGN - "The fruit of the tree "has always been the object of reverent care of animals which have guarded it through the centuries. One creature on one side and one on the other either eat of the fruit or bend over it with approval and protection. Sometimes certain animals seem to have charge of special fruits, whether they are growing on the tree or have been plucked and 150 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK are piled by themselves, so that vases and baskets of fruit are sometimes represented as between two birds or two animals, and in some cases, in very old designs, between two human beings, — evidently kings or priests. It is to be noted with great satisfaction that, limit- less as these subjects seem to be when first our inter- estjs awakened in them, they are very definitely bounded. " Thus far shalt thou go and no farther," the student hears again and again repeated as he endeavours to find evidence for what he believes, and it is both reassuring and convincing to find that only the absolute seems to have endured through all the chances and changes of time. When that which has been established as fact is thoroughly comprehended, it is surprising to see how quickly all art that has been based upon it can be distinguished from that which is purely fanciful, and only when we can thus contrast the two can we sufficiently respect fidelity to tradition in the former and revel in the unfettered freedom of the latter. MUG-PLATE XXI GHIORDEZ RUG HUG-PLATE XXI "J GHIORDEZ RUG Size: 9.10X4.3 Oriental Expert's Description FINE specimen from Anatolia, Asia Minor, and over two-hundred years old." Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. Author's Description This fine specimen of old Ghiordez weave and pattern shoivs the earliest use of the meander in the first, third, fifth, and seventh stripes of the border. Weavers exhibit various ways of using this motif, either as a zigzag of one colour running through a stripe of another colour, or as running over a ground that varies in colour, suggesting tiles. i RUG-PLA'J E XXI CHAPTER XVII SACRED MOUNTAINS BETWEEN the Caucasus district and the region of the Great Rivers lie the three lakes Gokcha, Van, and Urumiah, with Mount Ararat as a somewhat central point : these give a permanence to the physical aspect of the country and to this tract, men have come and gone from far and near all through the years since, according to tradition, the peace- ful dove was sent forth from the ark by Noah. During the past century railroads have made life in this part of the Orient very dif- Chinese designs showing conven- ferent from what it tionalized mountains. was before ; but, whatever the detrimental effects of i S 2 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK steel-rail invasion may be, we are at present gainers, for travellers are giving us both impressions and photographs of things that materially assist us in our study here at home. Within half a century many most learned writers on the architecture of the Orient have frankly said that there were certain places closed to travellers, about which one could only speculate. Even Ferguson,* in speaking of Samarcand less than forty years ago, writes : " Unfortunately no photographs have yet been published of Samarcand, and no plans of the buildings of that far-famed city. We have not seen any such detailed descriptions as would enable us to speak with anything like certainty of their affinities or differ- ences with other buildings of the same age. All that can be said with certainty is that the Great Mosque and tomb of its founder at Samarcand are enamelled in the same style as the mosque at Tabreez. . . The whole facade of the mosque, together with minarets and domes, is covered with painted tiles so far as can be ascertained." In contrast to this, in a letter written within the present year, a friend states that a returned traveller who has very much enjoyed his trip through Turkes- tan, has brought back 565 kodak views of central Asia. Close study of these views of the details in the ornament of the mosque and tomb of Tamerlane, to which Ferguson alludes so guardedly; of the interest- ing features connected with the life of the people all along the way in Russia, Turkestan, the Caucasus dis- trict, and the region of the lakes, where on his return trip the traveller made a careful study of the physical " History of Architecture," By James Ferguson, F.R.S., 1865. BUG-PLATE XXII SARAK RUG RUG-PLATE XXII SARAK RUG Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Oriental Expert's Description " l 7 HIS is a fragment of a larger rug made -*• early in the eighteenth-century. Various trees are represented in the design.'''' S. S. Costikyan. RUG-PLATE XXII SACRED MOUNTAINS *53 aspects of the country, — all tend to stimulate the stayer-at-home to perfect his methods of making an analytical study of objects, that by and through them he may be led into a comprehension of all that they embody. As it seemed appropriate to consider the tree in ornament where it had its mythical origin, — in the Garden of Eden, — just so it seems not amiss to formu- EARLY FORMS OF ALTARS COI'IED IN RUGS. late our opinions about sacred mountains while in thought we are wandering in the region of Mount Ararat. The Garden of Eden and the story of the Deluge have their counterparts in the folk-lore of all peoples. It has been given to the student of Chinese symbolism to trace unmistakably, in ornament, the sacred mountain of eastern Asia, and to follow it on its migration westward, where, in the rugs of Turkestan and the Caucasus district, as well as in certain Persian 154 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK and Turkish antique specimens, Mongolian influence is strongly felt. A symbol that has to do with some- thing people can understand is more readily adopted than one about which nothing is known. On this account the tree and the mountain, like the sun and the planets, have always been popularly considered and universally adopted, and the worship of the mountain manifested by those who embroidered its outlines upon their garments, and who called one of their divinities " The Great Mountain," was easily suggested and perchance communicated to others all along the line of conquest. In the old days this " Great Mountain " was considered the god of the Tartars. Be this as it may, we find in antique rugs enough to verify our most venturesome belief in the meaning and migration of the pattern. The sacred mountain of China, as it appears in ornament, is mythical ; for, while that land abounds in mountain peaks of interest, it is to the mountain in design that allusion is here made. At the centre of all things it arose from the ocean of Eternity. It had to do with elemental conditions, and was the first material mani- festation when all was void. The mountain in Mon- golian ornament is often pictured as having five peaks, sometimes only three. As an emblem in the hand of the " Pearly Emperor" and the Taoist priests, it is represented as a single peak, as is also the case when the symbol is held by Confucius. However signifi- cant this emblem, together with the sceptre and the fungus, may be to the student of symbolism, they have in ornament become known and verified features, and have been given names by which they may be SACRED MOUNTAINS i55 designated. In the ornament of no other part of the world have single features been so perpetuated as in China, because, as has been before stated, that which was vital in the past has still mean- ing to-day. In naturalistic repre- sentation, the moun- tains of the Orient, from Fujiyama in Japan to the Mount of Olives in the west, have figured in art and sceptres decorated with sacred , . . , t1 mountains and constellations. story ; but, with the. exception of the mythical mountain Sumeru, of Hindu mythology, there is nothing that equals in importance the Mongolian conventionalized representation of the sacred mountain. <£^y "Mount Sumeru is described in Hindu geography as a sacred mountain composed of gold and gems, situated somewhere in the centre of the earth, which they supposed to be flat, like a round table. Sumeru is the residence of the gods, is broader at the top than at the base, and is yet undiscovered by man. Around this mount is our earth, surrounded by an ocean of salt water of the same diameter as the earth. Surrounding this, in regular succes- sion, always doubling the diameter, are seven circular islands and oceans : 1st, ocean, salt water ; 2d, milk ; 3d, curds ; 4th, melted butter; 5th, sugar-cane juice; 6th, honey; 7th, fresh water. Hindu authorities differ greatly in descriptions of Mount Sumeru; no two agree as to its shape and dimensions. The Buddhists of Ceylon claim that Sumeru is of the same diameter throughout. Those of Nepal conceive it to be shaped like an Indian drum." 156 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK All primitive peoples have believed that the souls of the righteous mounted to heaven from the branches of trees on high mountains, and for this reason the mountains are revered, and are sometimes pic- tured in early art as bearing a crest or crown of stars. Star myths have in this way become intimately associated with legends of mountains, and deities presiding over the events of life are, by imaginative mortals, given special stars for their abode. The clouds, too, form part of the conventionalized orna- ment that bears directly upon these considera- tions ; and one special cloud form, which can be cloud-forms symbolizing deity, traced more directly than almost any other from the eastern to the western Orient, appears again and again in rugs and can be vouched for as a symbol of the presiding deity, whether it be Jew or Gentile, Christian or Pagan, who in looking upward calls upon the Divine. This cloud form originally represented the constel- lation of Ursa Major, in which, by the Mongolians, the Great Ruler was supposed to reside. In sixteenth- century carpets the form of the constellation and the star circles themselves are preserved, but in later copies the cloud form remains, with loss of meaning-, as a simple ornamental form. The outline of the ONE SIDE OF PORCELAIN JAR ORNAMENTED WITH THE EIGHT IMMORTALS OF CHINA SACRED MOUNTAINS 157 ^—^ ■8 fungus, or joo-e is sometimes mistaken for a cloud form in ornament, and one should use thought in deciphering and determining forms and their deriva- tion and meaning. When a Mongolian Tartar, 300 years ago, wished to represent Paradise, he threw over the field of his rug a de- sign which resembled twisted ribbons and flow- ing bands, which threaded their way through n u m b e r- less cloud forms, and which connected small circles and discs representing stars. Celestial beings were so designated by their surroundings, and not by wings or halos. One of the genii would be represented with clouds at the base of the figure, and a favourite deity would be sur- rounded with a conventionalized star ornament repre- senting his own special constellation, from which he was supposed to control the fates of men. Later thought has shown itself in designs in old Ispahan rues, where Mohammedan influence has introduced and mingled winged angels and other symbolic repre- THE JOO-E SCEPTRE AND NATURAL FUNGUS FROM WHICH THE FORM DEVELOPED. i 5 8 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK sentations quite at variance with the older thought. There are certain famous old carpets now treasured in museums and homes, upon which is indicated, as plainly as though written in so many words, a verdict by the weaver like this : " I am by birth a Persian Mohammedan ; but I intend in this rug to copy many old Mongolian devices which I do not under- stand, so I will faithfully reproduce them. I will, however, reserve the corner spaces for ideas of my own about Paradise, as the designs I am about to copy evidently refer to that happy place. I will also surround the entire field of my rug, in which I intend to weave these to me foreign ideas, with pure Persian border patterns : in this way I shall remain true to my birthright." And the student must one day be so familiar with the migration of ornament that he shall be able to dis- tinguish at a glance between foreign and native ele- ments in the design in any fabric. THE ' JOO-E ' SCEPTRE AS USED TO EXORCISE DEMONS CHAPTER XVIII CAUCASIAN RUGS TAKING the country on either side of the Caucasus Mountains, for the study of textiles which are strictly speaking Caucasian, we find that the commercialism of the present day has established methods of using the entire output of the looms of the district, and of opening centres for the sale of rugs ancient and mod- ern. So absolutely, though, have the dwellers in this part of Asia adhered to tribal designs, that the Cau- casian group of rug patterns stands to-day more easily recognised and authenticated than any other. Here we may study design not only in its purity, but as it shows evidence of Mongolian and Russian thought. Here we may stand in imagination with those whose speculations in regard to natural phenomena led them in earliest ages to make a visible sign of definite thought, and in the mingling of elemental motifs with those which show the influence of many generations of Mohammedan thought we find it possible to work our way through the centuries, proving, as we go, that which we believe to be true. This we are particu- larly well able to do in old Caucasian fabrics, which resemble each other in general appearance but differ materially in detail, the warp and woof sometimes 160 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK showing the difference between rugs which have close resemblance to each other in pattern. A rug may be called "Shifvan" by its owner, though another speci- men quite like it in design is known as " Cabistan " because the weave is finer ; and both of these may suggest Daghestan designs, with which we became familiar when first Oriental rugs found their way into this country. Kazak rugs, bearing well-known tribal designs that are sometimes claimed to be Shirvan and sometimes Daghestan, are distinguished from them by their heavier pile, and by evidence of more virile workmanship. Without experience in handling rugs, the ability to note these differences is more quickly gained by close analysis of objects than in any other way. Given two antiques that look exactly alike, on examination of the warp of one we find pure wool, while in the other a thread of brown wool is twisted with two threads of cotton, and the knots vary sufficiently to number more to the square inch in the first specimen than in the second. Noticing the weft of the finer rug, we find nothing but wool in the woof threads, while, in the other, cotton is twisted with the wool, and the surface of the rug presents a ruffled appear- ance. Although the patterns are alike, dealers and Orientals always distinguish between textiles that show these differences in weave ; and, while it is necessary for us finally to make these distinctions, during our preliminary study it is wise to hold to the broad classification and use the name " Caucasian " until the sub-divisions force themselves upon us. Mohammedan prayer-rugs are now made in all the , **^L*- , JTO' A PAGE OK CAUCASIAN BORDER DESIGNS CAUCASIANRUGS 161 well-known patterns of the district, but, while they show that the region has been conquered by the sword of Islam, they fail as yet to show any predomi- nance of the art motifs of the Moslem's faith. In this way the prayer-rugs of the Caucasus differ so materially from Turkish products that one but slightly trained soon distinguishes between them. There are certain antiques which were made by tribes who have so stoutly resisted the sword of the followers of the Prophet, that they have fled from their mountain homes absolutely impoverished rather than render either allegiance or tribute. Such rugs are valuable to-day as bearing distinctive features of tribes that no longer exist as such. Ethnologists trace the migrations of these tribes of the western Caucasus Mountains, in two directions : southerly into Turkey, where, as nomads, they lead a wandering life, and northward into Europe beyond the Black Sea. One product of the Caucasus is of so individual a nature that it proves the exception to all general laws, and that is the " Soumac " or " Shemaka " rug. When this style of carpet was first carried to Europe, it was called by Occidentals, who so often give Eng- lish and French names defining process to products from afar, " Cashmere," because in their method of weaving these rugs resemble the shawls made in the valley of Cashmere in India, of pashm wool of the " Cashmere goat." In designs, these rugs bear evi- dence of Caucasian origin, but differ absolutely from any other known style of weaving employed by rug- makers, as they have no raised surface ; the long ends left after weaving the warp and woof hang loosely 162 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK from the back of the fabric, thus making it other in kind from the rugs and tapestries of the Orient. At the present time the Caucasus district is well known to all interested in Oriental rugs, and under modern names its vast output is grouped. The three lakes Van, Urumiah, and Gokcha, and the cities and towns near them, bear names well known to the trade, but not so well known to the antiquarian, who divides his rugs into classes bearing very different names from those used to-day. Large factories are now established where carpets and rugs of all sorts are copied carefully and well, — so well that all art value is often worked out of them by the precision of present-day labour. Comparison of the modern map with that of the sixteenth century will give a clear idea of the changes which time and government are sure to bring about. Places that once were reached only by caravan are now accessible by railroad, and every possible facility is provided for weavers to dispose of their rugs, while in a past not very remote the individual weavers were sought out by enterprising agents who secured family heirlooms and treasures that now serve the trade as copies for reproduction. In Caucasian fabrics geometric ornament stamps itself in set precision ; we might almost state that unless the pattern be geometric the rug examined cannot be Caucasian. This forces us to try to classify the details of geometric ornament very broadly at first, before endeavouring to detect the slight devia- tions in primitive pattern brought about by outside influences of late years. In this way the different \ <-\ \ \ W \ ANTIQUE CABISTAN BORDER DESIGN SHOWING EVOLUTION FROM ARCHAIC PATTERN CAUCASIAN RUGS 163 types in Caucasian fabrics will force themselves upon our notice, and before we are aware we shall discover that though there are a few features which seem to be used as common property, such as the eight-pointed star, the reciprocal border motifs, etc., among the people of different districts, the methods of handling these patterns, and the preparation of materials in each case, seem to show some individual touch which helps us to distinguish between rugs in which at first we discovered only strong likenesses. Into eight divisions, and only eight, does it seem wise for our special purposes to group the rugs of the Caucasian district : — Daghestan, Derbend, Kabistan, Shirvan, Shemakha, Karabagh, Kazak, and Tchechen (Chichi or Tzitzi). These are the names given to these eight styles, and whether the weavers are dwellers in the towns or wanderers in the mountains they are apt to adhere to certain tribal patterns which we soon learn to know as such. ©aobestan [ Anti ? ue Daghestan rugs were made -,- _ ot wool, and were well made. 1 ney 1KIUJS ..,_..... . . were marked on in divisions that seemed very different, when first we saw them, from the markings in other fabrics. Medallions and octag- onal forms appealed greatly to our imaginations when we were first told that such designated not only where the host and his guests should sit, but in vari- ous ways had tribal significance. These outline forms were later bereft of all meaning when changing cus- toms multiplied them in numbers and distributed them in broadened and flattened lozenge and octagon 1 64 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK shapes, surrounded by angular hooks and serrated edges, upon oblong rugs. In small rugs, of which many were prayer-rugs, a crossing of the entire field with a sort of trellis gave numberless diamond forms in which were generally to be found geometric tree designs. In the borders an arrangement of angles and squares gave first one and then another set of decorative forms, a few of which have, strictly speak- ing, become more historic than others. In fact, in antique Daghestan rugs we find one of the fullest manifestations of the triangle that has been preserved for us in the art of Asia, and it is possible to break up any of the old designs of this region into its parts, which will always, even when presented in block, cube, or star form, present the right-angled triangle as base. This of course gives us the eight-pointed star in the ornament of that region, which differs from the zodiacal or twelve-sided figure of the Chaldeans, and from the ensoph of the Hebrews shown in the shield of David. A strong Mongolian influence is felt in Daghestan patterns, and perhaps helps us more than anything else to recognize the designs of that district. Dag- hestan, it should be remembered, is a district or prov- ince, and one of the most northerly of any known to us as specially connected with rug-production. Daghestan rugs should be studied architecturally, for the distribution of octagon and medallion forms was at first indicative of floor spacing, and in old Russian adaptations of Mongolian ideas, even in the construc- tion of cathedrals, special attention was paid to the relation of one form to another. The tent-roofs of CAUCASIAN RUGS AND BORDER DESIGNS CAUCASIAN RUGS 165 Turkestan were often divided into eight sections orna- mented with set patterns which were later copied upon the ceilings of tombs and the domes of cathe- drals. The tomb has always preserved more accu- rately than anything else the absolute expression of thought in art. An individual who might borrow for the decoration of some meaningless article the pat- terns of neighbouring tribes would be very careful, in making a pall, to adhere to tribal patterns. In the grave carpets of the Caucasus are found designs that were once the repositories of belief. In form these rugs are many of them like prayer-rugs, but are very long and narrow, with the niche at the extreme end of the attenuated panel. Derbend rugs resemble those of Daghestan, but are distinguished from them by minor points unnecessary, for ordinary purposes, for us to investigate. It is only honest to say that of the weavings of this quarter learned experts give varying opinions, so that it is unwise to force the frail bark of the novice into too deep water. It is universally asserted that in old Daghestans the warp and weft is more apt to be wool than is always found to be the case in Shirvan pro- ducts, where, particularly in the weft threads, one or two strands of cotton will be twisted with one strand of wool in such a way as to cause the finished rug to pucker most objectionably. The sides of Daghestan rugs are generally overcast with coloured wools. . Kabistan (Kuban) rugs are full of in- -I terest as showing the attempt to render " geometric ornament in a floral manner, and the weavings are so full of character and interest 1 66 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK that we soon become accustomed, in handling them, to classify them correctly. The use of a border design which has gone through many vicissitudes since it started in a northern province of Persia, in the long ago, as a strictly floral rendering of the beautiful single pink, so well known as a Persian motif, finds in the Kabistan weavings a most interesting expression in geometric form ; and the water pattern, in which at first veritable fishes were found naturalistically por- trayed, has been converted into a broad band decora- tion of stripes and dots. This border often surrounds a field strewn with large effulgent stars which are quite different from other star forms in appearance. At the extreme centre of these forms is generally found a small elongated star arranged upon a diamond shield from which project lines which suggest crossed weapons. From this whole centre a burst of radi- ance fills out a large figure which, though bounded by broken outlines, suggests in the main a star form. These " effulgent stars " are so disposed upon the field of the rug as to bring different colours in such order as to produce diagonal stripings. In fact it is a Kabistan feature to use diagonal ornamentation in both border and field patterns. In beautiful old specimens of these rugs the warp is of dark-brown wool of natural tones, and the knot yarn is of the softest quality; the finished pile being so closely clipped as to render the Kabistan weavings the thin- est and most flexible of any of the Caucasus district. In old Kuban (Kabistan) weavings are treasured time- honoured designs, and very occasionally an antique specimen is found, in which the field, worked in very mmm i. AMULET ORNAMENTED WITH SIN-POINTED STAR, 2. DESIGNS FORMED OF SQUARES, 3. STAR-FORM RASED ON RIGHT-ANGLED TRIANGLE, 4. STAR BASED ON EQUILATERAL TRIANGLE CAUCASIAN RUGS 167 dark blue crossed with a tan lattice, elicits the warm admiration of its owner. G ,.. Daghestan and Shirvan rugs resemble 5IMCV&U 1.1 1 1 1 1 4. each other very closely, and one has to con- IKUCjb* sider and balance very fine distinctions when deciding between them. The types of traditional purity which have been preserved in prayer-rugs have been copied again and again of late years with poor materials and wretched dyes, so that it were better if time-honoured patterns had passed away with the finer weavings of other days in order that antique speci- mens might remain distinctive. It is not unusual to see, in very old designs of the Shirvan district, great variety in the narrow border stripes that appear on sometimes one but oftener on both sides of the broad stripe in which tribal pattern is invariably found. In these narrow stripes highly conventionalized flower forms are stiffly arranged, but without attempt at the connecting-line or meander effect noticed in Kabistan patterns. The fringe of Shirvan rugs is usually tied and falls in loose ends. There are four patterns that more than any others appear in border stripes of Caucasian rugs ; these are the "tarantula," the "hooked swastika," the "recipro- cal trefoil," and the "tree pattern." Of these the first and second may be traced to Daghestan, where, with the " link-in-lozenge " and the large S pattern, they find expression in old rugs and lend designs freely to Kabistan and Shirvan weavers, while Kara- bagh and Kazak weavings claim the other two de- signs. Like all other motifs of the district, however, these are interchangeable, and we are thrown upon i68 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK details of method and weaving to settle the disputed origin of fabrics. Sbemafeba A11 tlie scattered motifs of ornament /d^«,« Q ^ with wllic h the Caucasian district abounds Tkasbmir) SCem " gathered together by the weavers of the flat-stitch carpets J known for a long time as " Cashmere " rugs. All the designs found in the knot carpets made to the north and to the south of Shemakha are woven in these fabrics, but particularly are two Mongolian designs perpetuated in old Soumacs, — the " mountain " and the " knot of destiny." These two patterns are skilfully woven and are almost universally found in antique rugs as tribal patterns in very truth. Because of the similarity of weave in these rugs to camel's-hair shawls they were erroneously dubbed " Cashmere " ; for, as the shawls came from the Vale of Cashmere, why not the carpets? It is now many years since the mistake was made and corrected, and among the weavings of the Caucasus, both ancient and modern, nothing of more interest or value exists. The long ends which hang from the backs of the rugs give weight and a clinging quality, both of which de- sirable features make it possible for these tapestries to serve as satisfactory floor-coverings. Ikarabaab Karaba gh rugs are at their very best IRlias when there may be detected in them an evident intention to copy the gloss and sheen of a leopard's skin, and in some antique speci- mens we find the black and tan spots freely disposed over the field of the rug in such a way as clearly to indicate the intent of the weaver. Both this pattern CAUCASIAN RUGS 169 and perfection of weave are, however, rare, and only by way of making it possible for the mind quickly to grasp an idea of the quality of the earliest and best Karabagh weaves is attention called to rare fabrics now almost impossible to obtain. The output of the district into which we are led by examination of fabrics that bear resemblance to and yet differ from Daghestan and Shirvan weaves consists at the present time, as it has for the past century or more, of a strange mingling of ideas and methods in the rugs made and sold. Loose, careless knotting and hasty work at times show great deterioration, and still there is an undeniable charm about Karabagh weavings. Both Persian and Turcoman influences are felt in designs ; and these may be easily accounted for, because of the location of the district midway be- tween the north and the south, where, during former Persian rule and later Russian possession, thought and style have been successively dominated. ^ . Heavv beyond all the fabrics of the dis- trict, Kazak rugs may be grouped as coarse * nomad products ; but their interest and value to the collector and the student is very great, for they show a virility which is found only when methods are crude and ideas unfettered. We knew of the " Cossacks " as horsemen in central Asia long before we had become familiar with Oriental rugs, but to wanderers and skilled riders the name " Kazak " belongs, and tribes dwelling in the mountains of the Caucasus adhere to old ideas there, as wherever they roam and settle. It is first, last, and always the intent of those who make rugs for their own use to i 7 o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK continue in well-established ways, and to perpetuate tribal patterns. Such are more or less necessary when personal property is indicated by marks put upon it to distinguish it from that which belongs to another. Were it possible for us to do so, we might without doubt find on vast numbers of Oriental rugs tiny devices which look to us like fragments of pat- tern, but which are in truth marks of ownership. Broadly speaking, Kazak rugs are heavy, and are tied with fewer stitches to the square inch than other rugs of the Caucasus. A rare quality about the wool or hair used causes it to untwist, when the knot ends are cut, into numberless single hairs, so that one knot-end will separate into upward of 200 parts, making upon the surface almost a smooth effect not- withstanding the great length of the nap and the few knots tied on an inch length of the warp. In modern Turkish carpets, in which the knots are made of materials prepared by mechanical apparatus, there is never this feature which so distinguishes the heavy Kazak weaves of the Caucasus, making them beauti- ful, substantial, and lustrous. Wandering mountaineers north of the Caucasus range have given to the nomad products of that quar- 7-ft . ter a different element in design from those ^ adopted bv the Kazaks of the trans-Caucasus J * region. A crude rendering of animal and human forms is shown in these rugs, which adhere in the main to Daghestan styles, but which in antique specimens show many Mohammedan devices. In their prayer-rugs, the comb, and the spot upon which to place the bit of sacred earth brought from Mecca, NORSK DESIGNS SHOWING FORMS OF llll. SUN BOAT AND ARRANGEMENT <>F THEM IN BORDERS CAUCASIAN RUGS 171 are almost invariably worked with other Moslem symbols. In the latticed field of old Tzitzi rugs the tree pattern is found most geometrically drawn, and the fringe extends from a webbing not unlike that known as "Turcoman," upon which an outline pattern in knots is sometimes tied. At the present time the rugs of the Caucasus are made to order in such great quantities that wherever we roam we meet and may study them in hotel corridors, office buildings, and in our homes, where they wear well and are most useful. They are invalu- able in the study of ornament ; for as yet the designs are apt to be the same as they have ever been, or in any event the line is distinct between designs which are native and those which are borrowed, and the day is not far distant when the student panoplied with courage will dare to distinguish between them. CHAPTER XIX PERSIAN RUGS ALTHOUGH robbed of many of its chief depend- encies by the inroads of rival governments and the march of empire, we still find Persia the most poetic of lands, and its weavings the choicest of fabrics. The physical aspect of the " Land of the Lion and the Sun " shows the vivid contrasts that are to be found when a land depends largely on irrigation for its beauty, and its gardens, like none others in the world, from which sun-flecked mountain peaks are faintly visible, have been portrayed in softest wools and shimmering silk. The rugs of Persia, in their varied characteristics, combine the strength and viril- ity of the art of the hill-dwellers and mountaineers with the high attainment, in a fully developed art and thought, which can be reached only in the life of cities and towns. There have been periods in the art of Persia when so great a perfection has been reached that nothing has ever since either equalled or excelled it. A recurrence to types, then established, is the constant effort of modern craftsmen. Such was the glorious reign of Shah Abbas* in the sixteenth and seventeenth cen- * Crowned, 1586; died, 1628. PERSIANRUGS 173 turiesj and such we shall find it wise to accept as the pivot upon which the history of the art revolves. It is quite impossible to think of Persia apart from Mohammedan rule, and yet much that is most truly Persian has no Moslem motif about it. In fact, the religion of Zoroaster has left its ineffaceable imprint upon much that even pious Mohammedans to-day have adopted and incorporated in their scheme of ornament. The flowery and poetic imagination of the Persian found in the imagery of the ancient fire- worshippers much that could easily be depicted in art ; the tall cypress indicative of immortality ; the cone, or flame ; the fire-twigs, and fire motifs of all kinds. These, as empty forms, were carried east and west by the Saracens and formed the basis of many designs now known all over the world as Moham- medan, although they were adopted, not invented, by grasping conquerors. All these considerations must control our opinions as we approach the study of the textiles of Persia. They are difficult to classify, standing as we do at the result of all the ages with scant information at the best ; but each year brings greater opportunity for independent research, and new thought is constantly furnishing us with tests to apply to our own opinions. The designs of Persia may be described as " floral," and the naturalistic and conventional treatment of the flowers of Iran command the intelligent apprecia- tion of all who have educated themselves to recognize the rare qualities of an art which disguises its method so that a new creation seems to result from conven- tionalization. In this way Persian art is itself utterly c 174 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK unlike all attempts of modern schools of design to copy it. The flowers that the ancient studied for curves, and grouped alternately and in set patterns over the fields of their rugs, rarely, if ever, show the hampering control of fidelity to the original, or indebtedness to it for more than suggestion. There is none of that balancing and facing, inside-out and upside-down rendering of a single motif of ornament which characterizes modern Occidental efforts, and symmetry is reached through the perfect distribution of unlike motifs, leaving each individual to supply with his imagination new features that will be unlike hose chosen by others. The Mohammedan utilized much in Persian art that lent itself to the arabesque style of conventionaliza- tion, but it never wrested from those who successfully developed the absolute in floral arrangement the dis- tinctive features which we recognize as Persian wher- ever we find them. The superimposed ornament of Persia, however, is Mohammedan, and again and again we find trailing over the ancient ornament of Iran the Arabic letters and tracery that bespeak the later art. The gardens of Persia make glad that country where to while away the hours where it seems " always afternoon " has, above many more laudable aims, dis-. tinguished the natures of those who dwell in the languorous East, and to understand the general make- up of the people is to have much light thrown on the designs in many rugs. " Garden rugs " are sometimes designed so accurately that paths, borders, and streams are easily distinguished. The custom of procuring water from the hill makes it necessary to dig trenches, MUG-FLATE XXIII SHIRAZ RUG BUG-PLATE XXIII SHIRAZ RUG Oriental Expert's Description /f RARELY beautiful example of antique ■^ Shir uz weaving" Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. Author's Description In studying rugs analytically it is most desir- able to have a number of examples typical of the weaving of special localities. Examination of the make-up of the leaf ornament distributed over the field of this rug shows it to be of com- posite gem-like nature and on the " crown-jewel " order. The drooping tip of the leaf form turns to the right and left in alternate lines across the field, and in the broad border stripe the same idea is maintained. In other Shiraz rugs are to be found entirely different arrangements of the so-called "palm-leaf' 1 '' ornament. RUG-PLATE XX11I X PERSIAN RUGS 175 through which the public water supply is allowed to flow into the gardens for a certain time each day, and in order that each quarter of the enclosure may be reached, the trenches are artistically and symmetric- ally arranged in the midst of the flowers, sometimes forming a cross in pattern. Raised paths are also made to observe different forms, and the borders of these paths are made picturesque by ground-vines and creeping moss. The custom of filling in one division with one sort of flower, and another with a different sort, is not so closely copied in rugs as in the embroi- dered textiles of Persia, and illustrations painted in words are found in the records of travellers who describe that upon which their eyes have feasted. Lord Curzon has written : " The character of Persian gardens is different from European. From the outside a square or oblong enclosure is visible, sur- rounded by high mud walls, over the top of which appears a dense bouquet of trees. The inside is thickly planted with lofty cypress, broad-spreading chenawrs, tough elms, straight ash, knotty pines, fragrant masticks, kingly oaks, sweet myrtles, and useful maples. They are planted down the sides of long alleys, admitting of no view but a vista, the surrounding plots being a jungle of bushes and shrubs. Water courses along in channels, or is conducted into tanks. Sometimes these gardens rise in terraces to a pavilion at the summit, whose reflection in the pool below is regarded as a triumph of landscape gardening. Such beauty as arises from shade and the purling of water the Persian requires." Many writers have described the famous carpet taken as booty by an early conqueror, which was wrought into a " paradise " or garden with the finest of silk, and — i 7 6 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK — " with jewels of the most costly and curious species, which were arranged with such consummate skill as to represent, in beautiful mosaic, trees, fruits, and flowers; rivulets and fountains; roses and shrubs of every description, which combined their fragrance and their foliage to charm the senses of the beholders. This piece of exquisite luxury and illusion, to which the Persians give the name of ' Baharistan ' or the mansion of perpetual spring, was an invention of monarchs as an artificial substitute for that loveliest of seasons, spring. During the gloom of winter they were accustomed to regale themselves on this magnificent em- broidery, where art supplied the absence of nature, and where guests might trace a brilliant imitation of her faded jewels." * Water running over coloured tiles furnishes another subject for naturalistic treatment, and different water motifs are often copied in modern fabrics from ancient rugs, though, when handled by workers in other coun- tries, the old method is not fully carried out. When we find the " zig-zag " in its perfection in old Persian carpets, we may note how it changes its colour as it finds its way through the border of a rug, the back- ground of which is also made to vary in colour and we can readily imagine the colouring of the tiles over which the water coursed. After studying the water designs in old rugs one becomes somewhat impatient with modern spiritless work, where vivid contrasts are made to take the place of the iridescent, evanescent qualities in antique weavings. Not only the flower-strewn gardens and the shady groves, but the flowers themselves were treated signifi- cantly* by those who formerly worked with almost religious fervour to perpetuate in wool what they most highly cherished. Tulips, roses, and lilies were * Crichton's " History of Arabia." PERSIAN RUGS 177 appropriately combined, and the Salaams or " thought- bouquets " of Persia were reproduced in strict con- formity to native ideas. These were stiff and formal, and sometimes the flowers themselves- were decorated with tissue paper, and " gilding the lily " was not unusual. The heads of flowers have always been popular for table-decoration in Persia, and " forms of beauty " made by the careful arrangement of blos- soms in pattern has called for a separate class for this style of ornamentation. The naturalistic ways of representing these things were later conventionalized, and water-lines and fountain and flower forms were used instead of more accurate copies of natural things. In the sixteenth century use was made of pronounced ornament in structural fashion, each floral form being connected by a framework of vines and curves with another like itself elsewhere in the field of the rug, the rosette and palmette shapes balanced by others distributed grace- fully but with evident intent. The love of hunting is strongly developed in the Persian, and the animals used and slain in the chase are often depicted in their famous hunting rugs, together with trophies innumerable. Some of the natural processes of nature which have called for the co-operation of man have from time immemorial given motifs for design. Among these the fertilization of the date is carried on now as it was centuries ago, and the most casual observers of modern practice may see that which inspired the ancients with awe. They drew upon their artistic instinct to portray it in the form of an eagle-headed i 7 8 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK deity, who, carrying a basket in one hand and a palm- spathe in the other, approached the sacred tree to perform the customary ceremonies. In the cottons and chintzes of Ispahan we often find these old cus- toms depicted in roughly drawn and crude designs. These brief considerations are of the manners and customs of a people whose productions we know, but often try to interpret with our own ideas, thus failing utterly to comprehend what might reveal itself to our more carefully trained eyes and judgment. The task is no sinecure to throw ourselves unreservedly into the ways of other peoples in order to understand that which they have manifested in their art, but until we do we shall but half know the pleasure to be derived from quiet contemplation of that which was, until distorted and destroyed by modern commercialism, a revelation of the instincts and interests of those who knew how to copy in art that which they revered in nature. In Persian rugs we stand face to face with definite styles, and can classify and arrange these styles with precision so as to locate them in different parts of the country, thus carrying analytical study to its fullest extent. If the rugs here in our homes can reveal their origin to us, it is of interest to us to know what their origin is, and to be led by such revelation to a comparative study of the history and migration of designs. According to our own knowledge we shall be able to discover how true to tradition the weavers were, and how modern variants of famous old patterns may be distinguished, not only from the old, but from each other. PERSIAN RUGS 179 It is almost impossible to dispossess our minds of all information concerning Persian fabrics in order to build up opinions afresh, for during the last half-cen- tury, Persian rugs, by reason of their merit, have forced their way into all well-to-do homes, and have been classed as " floral," and distinctively different from Turkish rugs. This classification is, of course, the broadest that can be made, but until the rug- owner becomes a student it is marvellous to see how well satisfied he remains with little knowledge. There comes a day, however, when the rug upon the floor shows signs of wear, and the grave question arises whether or not to buy another like it. The auction-room is haunted, but only occasionally is a small rug found that seems to resemble the fireside treasure, and then a fabulous price is asked for it, and the information vouchsafed by the vendor to the effect that only old Iran rugs bring such prices. Attention is called to the number of stitches to the inch and the fineness of the wool and now the aroused student hurries back to his home to apply to his own possession his newly acquired methods of analysis. Yes, surely there are far more stitches than in the Turkish rug in the library, and the yarn is fine ; the warp thread is cotton, and the pattern is certainly floral ; but something else is now apparent to the newly-opened eye : there is a definite arrangement of motifs, — the pattern is the same, an " Iran " pattern, as the Oriental dealer called it. So the Persian rug is cleaned and given a more important place than it had before, where it will have less wear, and the student sets out to secure a rough- iSo THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK usage fabric that will serve as hearth-rug. To one of the numberless places where only antiques are obtain- able he carries his limited knowledge and asks if he can be shown some old Persian rugs. Several are thrown upon the floor, no two alike, and to each one is given the name " Iran " until in despair the student begs to know why they are so called, and learns that " Iran," the ancient name for Persia, is given to rare textiles made after time-honoured designs woven according to strictly Persian methods. Such a pre- lude to the analytic study of objects is not uncom- mon, and by these means one is brought into such relations with the "woven books " of the Orient that the determination is formed to learn to read them. How S'hall the student proceed ? In the first place, the broadening of the horizon shows at a glance that limited knowledge has here- tofore confined even one's imagination, and that Persian ornament must of course vary according to locality ; also that though Persia's possessions have been wrested from her, her crafts are still distinctively Iranian. Again, proximity to Eastern countries naturally affects designs, and Turcoman influences are strongly felt. The patronage of royalty through the centuries has also done much to per- petuate old patterns and methods. After these reflec- tions one feels prepared to think of the products that have made and still make Persia the home of the knot-carpet. Now it makes all the difference in the world whether the student fell heir to these reflections twenty-five years ago or within the last decade ; MUG-PLATE XXIV DAGHESTAN RUG RUG-PLATE XXIV DAGHESTAN RUG Author's Description TN this antique Daghestan rug the designs -*■ are tribal, and consist chiefly of unrelated forms and motifs which in nomadic fashion ad- here to accepted rides and regulations only when quite convenient for the weaver to do so. The angular fashion of rendering the forms in the broad border stripe, the filling in the corners with odd conceits, and the scattering of the star- forms in the outer and inner border stripes, com- bine with other general features to distinguish this old rug above its fellows. The double prayer- niche is explained by Orientals to signify either a marriage-rug or a rug for children. It is evidently intended for the use of two worship- pers. RUG-PLATE XXIV PERSIAN RUGS 1S1 for within a very few years new names have arisen in places of commercial importance and the choicest rugs of the empire are being copied, and, under modern names and trade classifications, sold to-day. Twenty-five years ago the rug added to the collection of the student to whom we have just alluded might have been a " Kirman," a " Hamadan," a " Feraghan," a " Khorassan," or a " Shiraz." To-day he might have been supplied with a " Tabriz " rug, a " Herez," a "Gorovan," or a " Sultanabad," carpet, or a " Saruk." Why are the names different? Which names have endured, and which have changed ? Ob- jects are obtainable into which we must look for eye- training, and by which we must be led to apply our knowledge of things Persian. The name "Persia" immediately brings to our re- membrance thoughts of mighty monarchs who before the Christian era laid the foundation of much that made Persian art what it is to-day, of famous cities, — Susa, Ecbatana, Persepolis, and those, greater than they, founded by other civilizations; of the noble sys- tems of religion based on Zoaoastrianism or fire-wor- ship ; of the poets Firdusi, Sadi, and Hafiz ; of the Mohammedan conquest and supremacy ; of the mar- vels of sixteenth and seventeenth century art and of the latter-day attempt of the sovereigns to adopt European manners and customs. Back again to material objects our minds revert, hoping to see evidences of all these great world facts, forces, and fancies in that which remains in ornament awaiting our analytical study. With this comprehensive glance over the history i82 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK of the country, native styles begin to formulate in our minds, and to Shiraz, "where the sweet singer Hafiz lived, we look for the inspiration -felt by weavers of rare fabrics. To Ispahan, which royalty once made sumptuous, we look for motifs that sug- gest opulence ; and to the sacred cities of the Moslem faith, where fairs are held and rugs are bought and sold at times of pilgrimage, we turn for revelation of popular belief. We know that the Fire-Worshippers have been driven by the ruthless Mohammedans to the Kirman district, and in the mountains and through the country we know that we shall find primitive ele- ments in the weavings of the nomads. And so we proceed until north, south, east, and west have each contributed their share to the general fund of fast-accumulating information which has come to us in reply to questions suggested by the objects we handle, and at length we feel competent for our own convenience, to classify the styles in Per- sian fabrics. This we at first do in'the most arbitrary fashion, the mere effort enabling us to seek for reli- able confirmatory testimony which will carry us on in our investigations. ffll , nkflM Approaching both the object and the ^ country with the name Ispahan, we locate the beautiful sixteenth-century specimen which it is our good fortune to study, as a palace carpet made when floral ornamentation had reached so high a state of perfection that a definite style had arisen and found favour. Upon a field of softest carmine red, palmate flower forms are scattered at intervals, and, from one to the other of these, connect- PERSIANRUGS 18 j ing lines follow some device in outline without the faintest suspicion of arabesque tracery. Analysis of the pattern shows it in detail, and a dignified repose lends attraction to the fabric, which seems more like a tapestry than a carpet. By another and quite different rug we are led again into the Ispahan province. Here floral designs follow one after another, — the tulip, the pink, the iris, the lily and the rose, each drawn in naturalistic fashion, and each showing familiarity with the flowers of the field and with methods of weaving which combine various and fragmentary motifs into a finished and complete whole. Again a mythological design fills the field of a rare carpet, and the Ispahan red used as ground colour is almost completely hidden by animal and tree forms, and in the corners angels and demons are endeavour- ing to establish conflicting rights. Mongolian influ- ence is clearly and easily detected in this fabric in which the central design is surrounded by a purely Persian border of alternately wide and narrow stripes. Each for himself may thus proceed in analysis of pattern, and each will gain information worth more to him than the opinions of the wise. Ispahan styles in Persian rugs obtain at the present time, even though the fabrics themselves are made elsewhere, — in some other province or town, or in the great factories where old designs are reproduced. They belong to the most noble company of Persian fabrics ; they originally found their existence at the command of royalty ; and the name of the most revered of monarchs, Shah Abbas, has been given to i8 4 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK one of the most highly prized designs of Persia. When a place has produced a design that has lived long enough to warrant its constant reproduction by the best artists of a district, its name is given to the style, and an individual, wherever he may live, or a commercial house, wherever it controls human ma- chines, may manufacture rugs by the dozen or the gross in the well-known style, and as modern fabrics they may come into our possession. Methods of weaving alone can help in determining the age and locality of the weaver, and long experience is neces- sary before one becomes competent to do more than venture an humble opinion in regard to these techni- cal points. Styles, however, can be understood and named. ._ , The salaams or thought bouquets of Per- sia, in which the significance of each blos- som is thought of and suggested, marks the Kirman or second style of Persian fabrics, to which age and long-continued reproduction has added renown no less brilliant than the lustre of the fabrics themselves. Bouquets and vases of flowers, single roses and large blossoms, worked in strong primary colours, have grown old so gracefully that an old Kir- man rug has about it the quality of a glorious old painting. As in the products of Ispahan, the style obtains no matter who reproduces it, and in modern weaves that we know have come from commercial towns in the far north we learn to detect these old designs. In genuine Kirman rugs the wool is of so fine a quality and so marvellously spun that even a novice soon learns to recognize it at a glance and to RUG-PLATE XXV SOUMAC (SHEMAKA) RUG BUG-PLATE XXV SOUMAC (SHEMAKA) RUG Author's Description < n~'HIS is a most perfect illustration of an -*- antique Soumac rug. Water motifs pre- dominate in the design, while other elemental forces are indicated by the presence of the swastika, and star-forms scattered over the field. The figures that break the field of the rug in three places are called by experts " tank medal- lions.'''' Fountains and sprays of water are often skilfully depicted in the decoration of these " tank medallions"; and zigzags innumer- able, ivith a vast number of ivave-forms, show the primitive effort to represent flowing water. -*%>• 4^.^'v. :; : ' N ^VJ^- KlC-l'LATE XXV PERSIAN RUGS 185 distinguish all imitations from the genuine and origi- nal carpets. Whatever the development of the medal- lion in Kirman rugs themselves, in those that are made in imitation of them it is a prominent feature, and in both pomegranate and lotus outline it marks the Mongolian thought that once so strongly influ- enced Kirman styles. The ease with which designs may be reproduced is illustrated in the present-day manufacture of modern rugs in various places through- out Persia, in which adherence to antique models is made of paramount importance. Only in response to inquiry, or as the result of travel, can up-to-date knowledge be acquired of the facts that control the present immense output of looms in which these old fabrics are copied. In Tabriz, in northwestern Persia, European firms control the manufacture of vast num- bers of well-made rugs and carpets which are sold to-day under the name of the design copied, which is considered of more importance than the place of manufacture. Great confusion of thought attends this discovery, and, particularly when the name "Ta- briz " is given to the modern fabric, the student feels entirely at a loss. In this case, however, as with Ispahan rugs, when the type gives name to a style, familiarity with that style will lead to recognition of it in various weaves. The raw material used in Kirman rugs is excellent beyond the power of words to describe. Shawls of such fine texture that they may be drawn through a finger ring are made of the most marvellously fine wool, woven in patterns similar to those copied in rugs. Travellers who have found interesting proofs i86 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK that Persian patterns have been based on the natural products of the country, enumerate the great number of birds, animals, and flowers that cause the liberal Mohammedans to rejoice in their freedom to copy human and animal forms in design. Leopards, wild sheep, hyenas, wolves, wild cats, wild asses, gazelles, grouse, pigeons, quail, ducks, snipe, and numerous other birds and animals roam in the mountains or are domesticated in the groves, each at one time or another lending inspiration to designers, and motifs of ornament to weavers. Held within seven borders, the field of a superb antique specimen of the looms of Kirman is practi- cally covered with a scheme of ornamentation that reveals the working out of profile and flat flower forms to perfection. Though somewhat formal, each flower in one part of the design is repeated in another, so that there is absolutely no individuality, but merely a copy of a set design. Still, so technically perfect is the pattern that it must be considered a triumph from that standpoint. The eight-petal lotus design is worked up on the four large and four lesser petals in the centre, from which floral forms that ter- minate in fleurs-dc-lys designs confine the central field within a scalloped outline which separates the ivory colour of the ground from the rich full shades of red and blue which give life to the border stripes. Age has toned the colours, and time has worn parts of the surface almost to the warp, and yet it remains soft, pliable, lustrous, and beautiful, — a type to perpetuate. In Kirman and Ispahan rugs are to be found traces in design of the ancient Zoroastrianism which gave the PERSIAN RUGS 187 cypress-tree and cone flame motifs to ornament. Altars on high mountains, and temples of primitive construction, have ever held in themselves most inter- esting and suggestive themes ; and as, at the present time, one of the few remaining colonies of Fire-Wor- shippers has been banished to the Kirman district, it is not remarkable that the emblems of their faith are somewhat apparent in the work of their hands. In the mountain and desert region in the south of Persia the nomads and villagers weave, after tribal methods, rugs that are sold either in the fairs held during fes- tival seasons, or in towns where they easily find mar- ket. Antique Kirman rugs appeal to the lover of textiles and the student of history as few others do; they seem, in fact, to be of historical significance themselves, and they carry the thought back into the past with every carefully delineated cypress-tree and with each expression of mongrel thought. In the light of our kindled imagination we see the priests who guarded the sacred fire marching in sol- emn procession, each one carrying a bundle of twigs with which he divines future events and foretells the fates of men ; each reverencing the symbol of the founder of their religion, the cypress-tree of immor- tality ; each testifying to the belief in eternal vigi- lance and uninterrupted supplication. Reverent worshippers of light, as the emblem of all that is good, the Magi have figured in time and story, whether favoured by protection as in ages past, or persecuted, as they are at the present time. Modern art and song have conceded to the Fire-Worshippers the right to claim as their own many ideas which 188 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK have been developed along the line of their flight ; for, when banished by conquering powers, the Parsees have scattered and settled where they have found tolerance, peace, and quiet. Conservative and faithful as craftsman, they have both followed the ideas of others and carried out in detail their own inherited traditions, and ever and again in individual conceits we detect evidence of the belief in light and fire of the devotee who chants, — " Holy flames that gleam around Every altar's hallowed ground ; Holy flames whose frequent food Is the consecrated wood ; Holy flames that waft to heaven Sweet oblations daily given Mortal guilt to purge away, — Hear, oh hear me, when I pray ! " It was the worship of the sun itself that gave birth to the earliest religion of the Fire-Worshippers, and upon the simple and direct relation of man to the great God-sphere grew various other and lesser beliefs of which we find traces in the thought of the later centuries. Other systems have adopted or rejected certain of the main features of the original cult, and still the faith of ancient Iran underlies all the reli- gions of Persia. Greek, Sassanian, Mohammedan, and Mongolian adaptations of the original thought con- cerning the conflicting forces in nature have each added some fragment of ornament to confound the student, so that patterns of to-day are conglomerate and represent different stages and eras, any one of BUG-PLATE XXVI SECTION OF SOU MAC RUG BUG-PLATE XXVI SECTION OF SOU MAC BUG Author's Description T N this section of a Soumac rug may be seen -* the flat weaving which differentiates this style of carpet from any other. The long ends hang loosely from the back of the rug and give it iveight, while a tapestry effect causes the stir- face of the textile to appear quite different from anything else woven in the Orient. RUG-PLATE XXVI PERSIAN RUGS 189 which might be studied to profit and advantage when particularly suggested by designs in rugs. The legendary history of Persia has given number- less motifs of ornament that have proved more tenaci- ous than many which are founded upon more authentic history. Standards, weapons, crowns, trophies, costumes, and chariots, used by the mythical heroes of early centuries, have each at some time or other figured in the annals of the country and have taken definite form in its art. A striking example is the leathern standard often referred to as the " blacksmith's apron," which led the Persian hosts to victory until the Mohammedan con- quest. The story goes that an early prince being tempted of the devil, allowed the evil one to kiss him. At this the evil spirit suggested to the prince that he should kill his father and take the throne. This the prince proceeded to do, whereupon a black serpent grew from each of his shoulders. After cut- ting them off, they grew again and again, until the devil, being consulted, advised that the serpents be fed with the brains of men. This led to the slaying of many men, and to great revolt among King Zohak's subjects. Finally the king was overcome with re- morse, and, being anxious to ease his conscience, he requested his people to sign a document which stated that he had always been a just king. A blacksmith named Kaweh, who had been obliged to give up a dozen sons that their brains might supply food for the serpents, protested against signing the paper, and, carrying his leather apron aloft on a spear, proceeded to cry down the iniquitous monarch. He was followed igo THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK by a large number, who, marching to the market-place, called upon the son of a favourite ruler to lend them his aid in the revolt. Feridoon yielded to the request of Kaweh, and adopted as his standard the leathern apron, which he ordered to be studded with the most beautiful gems and elaborately embroidered, and until the conquest it served as the Persian standard. The soldier who then captured it sold it at an immense price, though not at its full value. Another emblem connected with this legend is that of an iron mace with a head shaped like a cow's, for the hero Feridoon had been hidden away during his childhood in charge of a gardener who had a cow of great beauty. The horns of this legendary animal are sometimes used as a decorative feature in art, and as talismans are considered most effective. 1h*>fnt One of the Persian styles met with in analytical study differs from the floral orna- mentation of Kirman and Ispahan rugs, and the student finds it impossible to classify the designs in the fabrics without recognizing the fact forced upon him by the presence of motifs too absolute in their suggestiveness to be ignored. The lancet-shaped leaves depicted one on one side and one on the other of a central flower form show the Persian floral inter- pretation of the old Mongolian idea of the fish in design, and of the balancing animal forms which, as surrounding an object of interest, seem to guard and protect it. This Herati design has been traced back to old tapestries and embroideries where the animal form is distinct, and yet in rugs themselves there is no record of correct interpretation of the design. PERSIAN RUGS 191 The long lancet leaves, shaded one side light and one dark, appear in the earliest weavings of the district, which is so far to the east in Persia that it is not strange that it has been influenced from without. When once the Herati pattern becomes known, the weave of the rugs in which it appears is found to differ, and one is obliged to discriminate between the style itself and the places which have adopted the style in rug design. Thus in the Feraghan region the Herati style has been developed, and is constantly used in the making of rugs in which Sehna knots are carefully tied upon cotton warp. The field in these rugs is covered with the Herati design surrounded by a border known also as Herati, in which alternate rosette and palmate forms appear upon a green ground. The operations of commercial firms in the Feraghan district is throwing upon the market great quantities of both well-made and carelessly woven rugs, each bearing close resemblance to traditional designs, or else showing the addition of unrelated motifs which soon reveal themselves to the student who has com- mitted himself to close study of types and their origin. According to workmanship and materials the original Herati rugs may be distinguished from the fabrics of Feraghan, and one should study therein the diaper fret which terminates in profile lotus-flower forms which are exactly like the rendering of the blossom found on Chinese porcelains in which the lotus pod shows in the midst of the petals. In some genuine Herati rugs the main border shows the butter- fly design in outline form, and this is rarely if ever copied in Feraghan carpets. A distinctive floral i92 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK arrangement known as a Feraghan feature shows a set spray or flower design at regular intervals upon the field of a rug which has other ornamentation as well of flower, leaf, and diaper. Upon these stiff upright stalks are set six blossoms of sometimes six but more often five petals each, and these are woven in light shades which appear in strong contrast to the ground colour of the rug itself. Herati styles are sometimes spoken of as Khorassan the name of the province in which Herati is situated, and that name gives us the fourth of the well-known Persian styles. ir>u -»*♦<■»«««« I" fabrics which abound in realistic IKDOrabball _ - , nower designs we find the Khorassan ^ style at its very best. In old rugs of this kind it seems as though the weaver had gone out into the garden and plucked as many flowers as he chose, laid them down upon the grass accord- ing to his fancy, and then drawn flower, leaf, and stem, with strict fidelity to nature. They differ from floral designs that represent flower-strewn fields, as they always suggest arrangement, though naturalistically drawn. So, also, they differ from Kirman designs, which show flowers in vases, and wide-open blossoms conventionally placed. Exactly what the difference is it is hard to define, unless it be that the Kirman designs seem always to embody some thought or reference to the significance of flowers, while those of Khorassan appear chiefly symmetrical, with a realism forced upon the worker after arbitrarily grouping his chosen blossoms. When it comes to conventionaliza- tion the Khorassan weavers show plainly East Indian influence, and in many of the so-called palm-leaf BUG-PLATE XXVII CABISTAN RUG RUG-PLATE XXVII CABISTAN RUG Author's Description c J HE "effulgent star" design is shoivn to •*• perfection in this fine specimen of Cauca- sian weaving. Upon a black background, red, yellow, blue, and white elongated star-forms are so distribided as to produce a diagonal effect. The border is a most perfect illustration of the attempt to use flower forms in decoration by a people accustomed to geometric patterns. The pink, made of a combination of triangles with stiff stem-forms, shows a Caucasian effort to reproduce a Persian floral border. In some fine specimens the weavers show much better success than is displayed in this example. The broad border, consisting of red, blue, white, and black stripes alternately disposed, is in direct imitation of an old Shiraz pattern which in turn was based upon a Central Asian water design, in which the spots that are woven in contrasting colours upon the stirpes take the form of fishes. It has not been possible to procure photo- graphs of rugs which show the evolution of this border design; but they exist, and the patterns upon them shoiv clearly and conclusively the basing of tribal upon archaic and symbolic design. PERS1ANRUGS 193 designs a rigidity of purpose marks the distribution of accepted motifs, while the colours show adherence to old styles and primary shades. The weaving of Khor- assan fabrics is peculiar : four or more rows of knots are sometimes tied with no weft thread to separate them, and then two or three strands of the woof are thrown in, one after the other, followed by four more rows of knots. This gives a peculiar look to the backs of the woven fabrics ; and the pile, when the rug is bent in the hand, falls naturally into divisions, showing the rows of knots in groups separated by the section of woof threads. This method of weaving, though adopted in other parts of Persia, is generally alluded to as a Khorassan feature. £. . In Sehna rugs we find the fifth style, and one which has given name to the Persian " knot, which differs so materially from the Turkish knot that it is easily distinguished from it. All the finest Iran rugs are tied with the Sehna knot, and many of them are of fabulous worth and of great beauty of design. An almost superabundance of ornamentation crowds into the field of Sehna rugs a vast number of knots in varying shades of the finest of wools, and hundreds of knots to the square inch cause these carpets to have so fine and velvet-like a surface that they are easily recognized and never for- gotten. Floral features are so rendered that each tiny flower point seems to scintillate with its dewdrop in gem-like fashion. The patterns in Sehna rugs seem to be their least important feature. It is never necessary to appeal to design for a verdict, as Sehna rugs reveal their origin in the weave itself. The warp i94 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK may be of cotton or silk, and the knots, as described, of the finest wool, but the finished fabric does not force upon us any need of analysis. The Sehna style, once known, is always recognized. There is no reck- less abandon in designs : all is stiff and formal, though minute and exquisite ; but as marvels of technical pre- cision Sehna rugs stand unequalled, and as such are highly prized. IRurfcistan In stron s contl ' ast to tne nne rugs of IRt * Sehna are the rugs that are made in Kurdistan, which give the sixth style to Persian fabrics. Lawless, free, and unrestrained are the designs to which the mountaineers of western Persia have adhered through the years. Bound by no conventions, yielding allegiance under protest, and ever wandering upon hilltops or in high valleys under the broad expanse of heaven, these mountaineers have given to the art of the weaver a note all their own, and it is as a low, full, strong, bass to the high soprano and tenor notes of more civilized communi- ties. Deep, rich colours, a carefully clipped lustrous pile, and tribal motifs of interest, combine to make Kurdistan fabrics most important. From Persian Kurdistan, near-by cities and towns are easily reached, and during the past century prevailing styles of ad- joining places have more or less influenced the weavers who carry their rugs to market towns for sale. Often in the field of a Kurdistan rug will be found a rectilinear lattice, each division of which will be filled with large circular-shaped rosette or flower forms, the colours of which vary,— pinkish, red, blue, and yellow flowers being arranged alternately upon a body colour PERSIAN RUGS i 95 of metallic blue; or the rug surface maybe broken up into three divisions, in each of which apparently meaningless geometric forms are grouped. The bor- ders are few that surround the field in this style of rug, and in the broad stripe large round flowers, like those that fill the field, are set one after another all around the rug. ur j. A most distinctive peculiarity in rug- weaving which marks the seventh style J in Persian rugs is produced by the use of natural coloured camel's hair for solid surface effects. The shading of the camels-hair pile varies, but in the main there is no effort made to do away with this feature, and very often dark flecks and lines of brown show in vivid contrast to lighter patches of the natural-coloured hair. Hamadan rugs present in general a subdued appearance, yet it is invariably the case that strong colours have been introduced in the small patterns that lie as trellis or grille upon the solid coloured camels'-hair background. Old Hama- dan rugs were sometimes of wool warp, but now the knots are invariably tied upon cotton warp. There is something about the slippery nature of the camels' hair which causes the knobs to slip upon the cotton warp threads unless well beaten down and held tightly in place by the weft. A closer affinity obtained when wool and hair was spun for the warp of old Hamadan rugs, and antiques show a strong resemblance to fur or animal skin hard to duplicate in any other style of weaving. At the present time camels'-hair rugs are very popular, and are turned out at factories where patterns are furnished by European firms, so that all 196 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK spontaneity seems to have departed from the once poetically rendered motifs of design. In one well- known Hamadan design, elongated diamond forms extend from a large one in the centre in either direc- tion to the borders of the rug, and these diamond forms are filled with small floral designs solidly packed together. White wool is sometimes used for background in these diamond medallions, in fact the predominance of yellowish white wool is one of the distinguishing marks of interest in Hamadan rugs ; sometimes only the two colours appear, — ivory white and the brown-toned camels' hair. £.. , In the rugs of Shiraz we seem to find the point of extremest interest in the history of Oriental weaving, and with them we mark the eighth style in Persian rugs. With Shiraz rugs about us we may revert to our rug-chart and assert ' with conviction that " the Oriental rug is a thing of sentiment and should be studied as such." Warp, woof, and pile of heavy wool make beautiful, antique Shiraz rugs. Colours like wine seen through glass, like ripening fruit, or deep-toned autumn foliage, have about them, in addition, a metallic lustre and irides- cence that differentiates them from all others known to the lover of things Oriental. The plumage of birds and the radiance of gems, the softness of moss and the warmth of fur, are suggested by the Shiraz rugs. From Ispahan and Kirman the weavers of Shiraz have drawn inspiration as well as from home sources, and in the borders that surround the typical Shiraz field these borrowed designs are found. Wide- open roses are set in Kirman style upon a background RUG-PLATE XXVIII SHIRAZ RUG It UG-PLA TE XX VIII SHIRAZ RUG Size: 14 X 11 Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth " ■ jfearGftG " 4 JffcJ '«*f .>_* 'V / RUG-PLATE XXV11I PERS1ANRUGS 197 of changing colours, or animal forms are converted into patterns which do not at first reveal their motif. The tree, in Shiraz weavings, is treated differently from the Ispahan rendering of it, and shows a blend- ing with the floral background against which it rests. The edges of all plant or tree forms in Shiraz rugs are softened, and are quite unlike the highly convention- alized, more architecturally rendered designs in weav- ings farther north. Beyond the pile of Shiraz rugs the warp and woof extend in a webbing which is woven or embroidered in pattern, and which is a dis- tinctive Shiraz peculiarity. Shiraz rugs have always been used as pilgrimage rugs and as votive offerings. The odd conceits of individual weavers are evidenced in Shiraz rugs, and at the same time, in examining them, one can readily conceive of whole families working at patterns so well known that even little children could take their turn at the loom. Some- times the knots are so tied that the pile falls from the centre toward the ends of the rug, instead of from one end to the other, and with this change of method the entire pattern shows in a different light, and a subtle charm emanates from the fabric. The eight principal styles in antique Persian rugs are supplemented and varied by a vast number of other and lesser varieties, each one of which becomes of interest when eyesight and insight are sufficiently trained to recognize them. The interesting question arises, as to the name one should give to a rug which in design follows a well-known style, but in weave reveals a place of manufacture other than that where the design had its birth. A Shiraz rug, — what is it ? 198 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Is it a rug made in Shiraz style in Cabistan ? Or is it a rug made in Cabistan style in Shiraz? Invariably the amateur considers design, while the professional handler of rugs devotes himself to technique. Weaves and methods of manufacture, a knowledge of which is harder than all else for the student to obtain, gives names to the rugs that are bought and sold among us. Oriental i'ugs as repositories of symbolic design are, however, to be viewed from other than the standpoint of trade classification, and just as we detect any lack of fidelity to historic designs in Louis XVI silks, satins, and cottons, because of our intimate knowledge of the period without necessarily attempting to say in what factory the goods were made, just so we may venture an opinion in regard to Oriental styles when the study of the past and its influences have made us expert in the recognition of accurate rendering of traditional ornament. This careful and analytical study will put one in possession eventually of knowl- edge which at the outset seems most remote. /- Embraced under the general name of _ Lrorevan are grouped several vane- ties of rugs which are well known to modern rug-buyers. Puzzled indeed was the Occi- dental student when first the romantic story of the shaded ground in Gorevan carpets reached his ears. He was told with grave assurance that once there was a celebrated weaver who tried to reproduce the sky in the solid colour field of his rugs, and that so absolute was his success that even drifting clouds were won- derfully portrayed. The weaver was said to be a native of some far northeastern part of Persia, and PERSIANRUGS 199 the fabrics, few in number, woven by the dreamy mystic, were known as Herez rugs. The outside borders of these Herez rugs were generally of self- coloured camels' hair or goats' hair, while in the middle and inner borders were floral rosettes con- nected by angular vine formations. Belief in this tradition enhanced the value of what was at first sup- posed to be an unique possession, until, under the name of " Gorevan," rugs with shaded blue back- grounds began to appear in great numbers, and no explanation was given for the change of name. Difficult indeed was it to arrive at any conclusion in regard to these textiles through analysis of them. The materials differed ; in some rugs they were coarse, in others fine. The pile wool was rarely lus- trous, but the knots (Ghiordez) were firmly tied, and the fabric was strong and well made. In very truth the shaded background did suggest the blue of the sky, and in some instances stars and constellations appeared in the patterns which filled the central medallion and corner spaces. Through dealers the information was finally obtained that " Gorevan " was in reality a trade name supplied to establish the superior merit of rugs, made commercially in the Herez district, which adhered with slight variation to the traditional Herez design. These Gorevan rugs at once became popular, and whether or not some old individual weaver was ever responsible for the inten- tional cloud effect in his solid backgrounds, or whether he found it impossible to use his dyes suc- cessfully, and so produced a streaky effect, we never shall know. There is all the difference in the world 200 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK in the point of view ; " drifting clouds " are far more poetic than accidental streaks ; and in a fond and foolish way we believe in the sky-carpets while we confess that in them we find only obscure designs and nothing that helps us very materially in the study of ornament. ~ . w In Saraband rugs the design which has ^ given itself to the most interesting and perfect development is that which either in composite or naturalistic representation is known as the "palm-leaf" in ornament. Under whatever name this figure appears, — " almond," " feather," " pear," " crown-jewel," " river-loop," " cone," or " bouquet," — it will ever and always be called by some the "palm-leaf" and new explanations of its origin are continually being made. Without doubt, as has already been stated, the design had a different meaning in one place from that it had in another, and more than one explanation of it is therefore neces- sary. A very profound student of Oriental symbolism explains the Saraband pattern as one of Mohamme- dan origin, representing the flowers of Allah arranged in what is known as Mohammed's bouquet, and in antique rugs the motif is quite different from that found in modern carpets and proves beyond a doubt that there is still something to be discovered and that we speak now only the " little language " and stand at the " beginning of days." Comparative study of the borders of Shiraz and Saraband rugs is both necessary and profitable, as they sometimes suggest each other. The many narrow borders of the Sara- bands hold both native and borrowed designs, while RUG-PLATE XXIX HERAT I RUG RUG-PLATE XXIX HER AT I RUG Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Oriental Expert's Description " /I FINELY woven eighteenth-century speci- -*■** men of the Khorassan looms. " S. S. Costikyan. RUG- PLATE XXIX PERSIAN RUGS 201 in Shiraz rugs there are often on each side of the broad border narrower ones composed of alternate stripes diagonally arranged ; and the webbing beyond the pile, either plain or embroidered, is a Shiraz, not a Saraband feature. «- , j A glance at the map of Persia will show . the location of towns, provinces, and dis- tricts in which objects handled here in the Occident have interested us : Sarakhs Teheran Tabriz Meshed Sultanabad Irak Kashan Kermanshah Kara Dagh Azerbiajan Ardebil Sirab Two of these names strike us with startling famil- iarity, — Sultanabad and Tabriz, — and we realize how many modern carpets come to our observation bear- ing either one of these names. For statistics regard- ing them we are indebted to consuls and merchants, who lead us to a realization that for standards and types we must look to antiques ; for while the Orien- tal rug in the long ago was the child of the imagina- tion and fancy, it is now a prose fact commercially controlled. Tabriz lies to the east of Lake Urumiah, and in its factories are manufactured rugs of techni- cally high grade in which old patterns are reproduced with such fidelity that great credit is due to the management. The designs in Tabriz rugs differ sufficiently from those they copy to be easily dis- tinguished from them by the connoisseur, but they are the most difficult fabrics for the uninitiated to handle. The student of historic ornament looks L 'BRAHY ■ o< CALIFORNIA "■^asKr-s-- 202 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK upon them very much as the print collector regards his etching of a famous painting. Old designs are wrought, with frankly confessed new materials, which are reproductions — and beautiful ones — of treasures that now exist only in fragments. The most marvel- lous of these, a close and accurate copy of one of the most famous throne carpets in existence, has within a few years found its way to New York, and in each exquisite flower-form may be traced absolute fidelity to the original, while the materials have been as care- fully prepared as modern skill and perfected methods would permit. We are told that these gorgeous car- pets are woven by boys who at the order of an over- seer tie the coloured knots one by one upon the warp threads. One is thus reminded of the service of the boy in the Bible story, who, at the bidding of Jona- than, went out to bring back his master's arrows according to a preconceived plan which David, the beloved friend, could understand. He, hidden away in the cave, learned by the orders given that he must flee, "but the lad knew not anything."* So these Oriental boys to-day are dumb instruments of service to us in doing as they are bid, while the intelligence of their masters, who are seeking, though for commer- cial purposes, to perpetuate time-honoured designs, should be respected, and their efforts encouraged ; for they are enabling many who cannot possess orig- inals to know what they are like, through familiarity with faithful copies of them. Known as such, their works have a right to existence, but they should * I Sam. xx, 35. PERSIAN RUGS 203 never be bought or sold as antiques. In Kirman designs reproduced in Tabriz rugs we have excellent opportunities to study the outline forms given to various medallions by weavers in the past. With a desire to economize labour, the ground in Tabriz rugs is often of solid colour, and upon it the medallions very plainly confess their general outlines and detail ornamentation ; and when analysis of originals has made one familiar with them, then, and only then, may one feel confidence in himself in the examination of reproductions. _ . _ . Just as Tabriz furnishes a manufac- Sultanabafc J . , , tunng centre for rugs that bear close ■*»*yS resemblance to the textiles of southern Persia, and a market for those collected in near-by districts, so in Sultanabad are collected and manu- factured a great quantity of rugs bearing central Persia designs. Saraband, Saruk, Hamadan, and Feraghan designs are made to order, and are varied according to fancy. This varying historic ornament by the individual designer, is alas, the great danger that threatens the student of symbolic design at the present time, there is no escape for him but to drink deep at the fountain of truth, and then as an individ- ual do what he can to establish facts and separate them from modern variations of them. This leads us to consider briefly the difference between rugs as floor- coverings and as art objects, between modern shams which imitate something they do not reproduce, and rugs as vehicles of self-expression or repositories of traditional belief. It is apparent to the most casual observer that as objects of beauty both modern and 2o 4 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK antique rugs have every right to force themselves upon our notice, and it is our privilege to lose ourselves in contemplation of the marvellous handling of materials that so controls our aesthetic sense that we care not when or by whom the fabrics were made, revelling, as we do, in their beauty. If, however, through the study of pattern in rugs, any one finds it stimulating and profitable to reach back, through the years to the beginnings of human thought and endeavour, he, whoever he may be, should make a protest against loose handling by designers of historic ornament. Let the artist or craftsman, with all the originality he possesses, make patterns that shall be his. Let mod- ern art have its way and express itself as it will, but do not encourage any one to handle traditional pat- terns with impunity. Faithful reproduction is not imitation. One may serve his day by so carefully studying the art of the past in schools of design in Europe and America that he may furnish Oriental weavers with their own native patterns, through which may be handed down for future interpretation symbols that in his hands have suffered no deteriora- tion. There is room for all the beauty that new thought and new art can provide; but let Egyptian lotus blossoms stand rigidly and stiff, while Indian lotus forms rest placidly. Let the vine find its way in and out among Persian flowers, while at the same time it awkwardly forces the geometrically formed Turkish blossoms into constrained relations. Let the mysteri- ous cloud circles of Chinese ornament lift the immor- tals to their heaven of heavens, while the wings of the cherubim meet over the ark of the Lord. But oh ! MUG-PLATE XXX SHIR AZ RUG RUG-PLATE XXX SHIR AZ RUG Size: 7.1X4.8 Oriental Expert's Description /I VERY antique and perfect gem for colour, _ "* quality, and silky effect.' 1 '' Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. */Jv •-*s- "ti» wt^.. J^ W*- ^*- ..««4~ •10 ->K- ids* -jflx v. ' ' C ' ..»•&■•* v '^ -^-.yS* ■-'iv i '\* i'l; mtm RUG-PLATE XXX PERSIAN RUGS 205 refrain, ye who for livelihood or fame are handling ornament, from growing Chinese flowers on Egyptian stalks and from surrounding Assyrian deities with Buddhist halos ! CHAPTER XX TURCOMAN RUGS THE Turcoman region of rug-producing country lies to the north of Persia and Afghanistan, and west of the Caspian Sea, and, for our convenience in hand- ling the subject, may include some of the Mongolian and all of the Eastern Turkestan district. The princi- pal places for shipping the rugs made by wandering tribes and dwellers in remote towns have in the past given their names to objects which have been gathered up by caravan and sold to dealers in Oriental markets, so that erroneous nomenclature has been obtained, and until recently little has been done to rectify mis- takes. Even now it is but very little that any English- speaking student can do to glean information that will more than carry him on to the recognition of some new error which his earnest efforts may help to eradi- cate. The little that is known of the Turcoman country and Turcoman products is well known, and so firmly established in the minds of those who have been long interested in the study of rugs that it is unwise to make definite statements of recent changes that have somewhat altered the ideas of advanced thinkers. When Mr. S. G. W. Benjamin was our first Minister to Persia (1883) he wrote that in Asia the rugs always called in America " Bokhara " would not be recognized TURCOMAN RUGS 207 by that name in the place where they were made, but as " Turcoman rugs," made in the region " which was the cradle of the Turkish 'race, and is now occupied by the fierce Turcomans, who have been at one time and another alternately subject to Persia or to the Mongols, and are now tributary to Russia." With this information the then scantily equipped student and rug-lover proceeded to call all Turcoman rugs by that name, until returned travellers brought home the new name " Khiva " with their possessions, and we learned that the rugs were bought in the caravan town of " Khiva," in the great desert, and, although to our untrained eyes they were of various sorts they were grouped under the one name " Khiva." A quarter of a century ago the average home boasted of few Oriental rugs at the best, and such, with the names arid history given by the Occidental dealer at the time of purchase, stand to-day to con- front the expert, and to serve as visible and accepted proof to the contrary, when he propounds advanced and correct ideas which differ absolutely from cher- ished traditions. In point of fact there are wide differ- ences between the fabrics of middle Asia, and in them the Mongolian elements are so evident that they must be understood before the ornament which has evolved from them can be properly described. However high the mountains that separate Turkes- tan from China and Tibet, and however difficult for the foot of man to penetrate the mountain passes or to force his way under protest, the thought life of the extreme East, with its accompanying symbolism, has drifted westward through the centuries, and to it we 2o8 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK are indebted for more than at first appears. Certain systems of adopting signs as tribal marks, and of dis- playing such in prominent places about the tent home, upon the garments of servants, and as brand marks on cattle, have obtained through centuries, and the custom is demonstrated in the Turcoman district with earmarks of Mongolian ancestry which differentiate it from methods of central and western tribes of like wild nature. In our rug-chart we have yielded the "octagon " to the Turcoman division, and through it and by it we may find our way into the thought-life of the Mongo- lian races. Historians but meagerly concede the rights of the Chinese to any sort of precedence, because they do not figure in the march of nations toward the same sort of goal that has developed the ambition and progress of the Caucasian race. Art is at last, however, beginning to acknowledge its debt to the land where the silk loom was first reared, and the potter's wheel invented, and we are but in the begin- ning of our knowledge of things Chinese. In the octagon the eight divisions of location were without doubt originally indicated, and in ancient Chinese thought these divisions were supposed to be presided over by animal deities, just as in all early cal- culations the points of the zodiac are represented as under the control of presiding forces. The powers of light and the powers of darkness formed the two extremes, and as such are represented by light and shade. When a semi-barbaric art endeavoured to express this pictorially, the octagon, with its light and dark boundaries, was the result, and in early drawings PA-K.WA SHOWING THE EIGHT DIAGRAMS OF FUH-HI Tae-Kiek, or Yang and Yin, in Cento TURCOMAN RUGS 209 FUH-HI, THE DISCOVERER OF THE " EIGHT DIAGRAMS." the animals controlling the elements were crowded into circular and octagonal forms, and represented with great fidelity to religious belief. To prove that this eight-sided form traces back to the " Pa-Kvva," and the " Yang and Yin " of Chinese symbolism is now much easier than formerly, as both fabrics and porcelains testify to the gradual evolution from pure symbols to conventional forms of this design. The five directions of the Chinese— north, south, east, west, and middle — form the structural lines upon which the famous octagon is built. The " Dragon," encircling the east from north to south, and the " Fung-Hwang," pro- the west from south to north, enclose the sacred directions. In the deteriora- tion of the pattern at the hands of weavers who did not comprehend it, the animal and , . * , . THE " TAE-KIEH" OR bud forms became mere patch- "yang and yin." es of light and shade, and in Turcoman weavings we find the Mongolian thought crystallized into a set pattern in so-called " Bokhara " rugs. The " Pa-Kwa," of Fuh-hi, the mythical founder of great tecting 2io THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Chinese philosophy, has formed the base of a vast number of designs, and the " Tae-Kieh " has found its way into our own land to serve decorative purposes. Volumes have been written by both Chinese and Occidental authorities regarding the " Pa-Kwa," but for our purposes it is necessary only to state that its combination of broken and unbroken lines is made with evident intent. The unbroken lines represent the celestial and male elements in nature, while the broken lines refer to things terrestrial and the female element. By three unbroken lines ^^^^ reference is made to father and heaven, and by the broken lines j^= SS we find mother and earth designated, and so on through the heavenly pantheon until the elements, fire, water, dew, etc., are all disposed of and distri- buted as possessions of sons and daughters of the Divine Parents who rule the universe. The central disc in the pattern is divided by two semicircles. This object is called the " Tae-Kieh," and, when arranged in the centre with the eight diagrams around it, is used as a charm and as decoration for all sorts of articles. Among the possessions of many collectors there exist to-day objects decorated with these lines and signs, which until lately have been described, even in museum catalogues, as " philosophical emblems." When a sufficient amount of interest was awakened, students were addressed on the subject, and they have given information which has added perceptibly to the pleasure of those who are making collections illustrative of Chinese philosophy. The outline shape of the " Tae-Kieh " is frequently described in design, TURCOMAN RUGS 211 the dividing line through the centre following the circles of the " Yang and Yin." The story goes that old Fuh-hi over three thousand years ago, discovered the marks known as the " ei^ht dia- grams " upon the back of a tortoise, and in some ornamentation we find the tortoise used as a decorative feature. Fabu- lous beings are sometimes represented as holding the " Pa-Kwa," such being used as charms. It is generally believed that the diagrams furnish a clue to the secrets of nature, and speculations based upon their various combinations are indulged in by believers in occult influences and geomancy. When properly arranged, the three unbroken lines referring to the " father " are placed in the eastern position, and the three broken lines are placed in the west, so that, counting the unbroken lines as three, and the broken lines opposite as six, the number nine is the result, and this added to the central unit (the " Tae-Kieh ") makes the sacred number ten. So on all around the circle, counting the lines opposite each other, we always have nine, so that there are four sets of nines, each in turn made ten by adding the central unit. THE TOMOYK EXTENSIVELY USED IN MONGOLIAN ORNAMENT. It is astonishing to find that 212 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK ORNAMENTAL USE OF SYMBOLIC FORM. so many patterns may be traced to the " Pa-Kvva," and besides ceremonial objects, ornamental and ordi- nary textiles are to be found, decorated wholly or in part with motifs suggested by the " eight diagrams " and the " Tae- Kieh." Among the most distinctive and famous of Mongolian patterns may be included the "sceptre " or " joo-e wand," the " cloud," the " Y pat- tern," the " pearl," the " wave," the "trellis," the " lozenge," the "scroll," the " bat," the " butterfly," and many other forms which are frequently found in Turcoman as well as in Chinese and Tibetan textiles. In genuine Chinese rugs we find archaic and emblematic design, but in this connection we must consider only such as avail us in tracing the ancestry of Turcoman patterns. In Turcoman textiles we find more to encourage us still to believe in the Oriental rug as a thing of tribal significance than in almost any other fabrics now made west of Tibet. The name Turcoman, once so little understood, is now used almost universally to desig- nate the fabrics which are made by peoples who have lived for centuries in undisputed possession of desert tracts and mountain retreats in central Asia. Across the plains of Asia there have come only faint echoes of the glory and renown of the great con- queror Tamerlane (Timoor Lenk) 1 who in the four- teenth century, by force of his phenomenal will power, i Fl. 1336-1405. MUG-PLATE XXXI SHIRAZ RUG RUG-PLATE XXXI SHIRAZ RUG Size: 6.10 X 5.4 Oriental Expert's Description ' l l HIS Shiraz rug is 'known as a Mecca rug, -*■ because it comes from that Holy City, ivhither it ivas originally taken by a Persian pilgrim. In ancient times, even more than at present, a pilgrim had a particular feeling about taking with him on his journey the finest rug in his possession. It would be very difficult to imagine a rug more silky than this specimen. It looks like an animal skin.'''' Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. RUG-PLATE XXXI TURCOMAN RUGS 213 controlled a sufficient number of followers to aid him in his spirit of conquest, and to carry and plant the Tartar banner all over the central and western Orient, so that art and industry, architecture and design, were each and all different from that period. In none of the fabrics of the district between the Caspian Sea and Tibet, which now belongs in part to Russia, do r$$h The Petal. The Trellis. The Y-woik. The Fish-roe. The Scale. The Network. I CHINESE HISTORIC ORNAMENT. The Sceptre Head. we fail to find motifs of design that do not in some way or other show the influence of Mongolian thought. Octagon and circular forms can best be studied in Khiva and Bokhara embroideries, for in them the freedom of the needle enables the designer to work the most intricate details that are sometimes omitted when the patterns are woven in rugs. There are, for example, in Turcoman design, about eight different ways of representing the sun and its apparent motion. These eight forms of the circle are found most accu- rately rendered with small and carefully laid stitches upon cotton cloth, and in some old rugs these are reproduced and lend great value to the fabrics. 2i 4 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK IRnkhflrji Fully twenty years ago, when the general public had first become interested in the ■ dull-coloured rugs affected by the highly artistic, who had revolted from the gaily tinted fabrics of the Turkish looms, rugs were sold and purchased as Bokharas which to-day we find should be called by other names. Mr. Benjamin, in 1885, wrote warningly of these so-called Bokharas, and explained that their deterioration in colour was due to the loose principles of the Russian government as compared with the Persian control of dyes and wearing. He thus writes : " One of the finest rugs made in the East is called by the Amer- ican dealers the ' Khiva,' but more often the ' Bokhara,' rug, probably because it first reached the West through merchants trading with Bokhara and Khiva, great marts of central Asia. By Orientals, however, the Bokhara rugs are better known as Turcoman rugs. They are made in the region which was the cradle of the Turkish race, and is now occupied by the fierce Tur- comans. The colours used in these rugs are few, chiefly various shades of maroon, red, and blue, interwoven with a creamy white. The pattern is also quite uniform, consisting almost invariably of a many-angled conventional figure often repeated in the centre, surrounded by a border somewhat similar, but in smaller designs. But the variety of combinations that are evolved out of this pattern is infinite. When one sees one of these Turcoman rugs it appears as if he had seen them all, and yet no two are alike, either in design or quality. The durability of these Turcoman rugs is mar- vellous. They were not made originally for the market, but for the use of the tribes themselves, and are intended for portieres of tents and to throw over temporary divans. One may some- times see rugs of this class, fifty to seventy years old, that have been in constant use by some pastoral clan, and are still not only in excellent condition, but have acquired a velvety softness and a certain indescribable peach-bloom or sheen. To my taste there are no rugs of the East that give more permanent pleasure to the MONGOLIAN ORNAMENT FOUND IN CHINESE AND TURCOMAN RUGS TURCOMAN RUGS 215 artistic eye than these of the nomads of Turkestan. It is therefore greatly to be regretted that the aniline dyes which those tribes have received from Russian traders in recent years have come into considerable use in the making of their rugs." Under whatever term these rugs figure in the Orient, there are three names that are used in America to dis- tinguish from all other fabrics those of the Turcoman district, these are "Bokhara," "Khiva," and "Af- ghan." Analytical study of objects has familiarized the student with the main features of each of these styles, which, though resembling each other, do not share all points in common. The dark-red pile in all of them looked to us at first to be very much the same, the point of divergence being what, in handling the fabrics, appeared to be a warp in some of the dark- red rugs of entirely different nature from that found in others. A white-wool fringe soon caused us to group together another variety of rugs which seemed unlike many bearing the same designs. And so, very, very haltingly, progress was made. In the auction-rooms, where so much information is freely dispensed which is not sufficiently sifted to be taken without a grain of allowance, vast quantities of red- pile rugs with long white-wool fringes were classed as Bokharas until the garish nature of the colour sug- gested the " Russian trader," and great was the fall of the modern Bokhara in the estimation of the enlight- ened student. Antique Bokharas were finally estab- lished as types, and wherever they are copied, whether inside the walls of the ancient city or in Russian Bok- hara eight miles away from it, on the plains or in the mountains, whether we decide to call the fabrics "Tur- 2i6 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK coman " or "Tekke," they are at least at the present time known and recognized as " Bokhara." Bokhara pattern consists of a series of squares or oblong rec- tilinear divisions which extend over the entire field of the rug, around the angles of which are described octagonal forms in which the Mongolian distribution of light and dark effects is clearly expressed. Star- forms more or less elaborate are found at the inter- section of the crossed lines that underlie the more apparent octagonal pattern ; while between the octa- gons, and in the centre of the squares or oblongs, diamond, star, and small octagonal figures carry most significant motifs of ornament which are always dis- tinctly tribal. In Bokhara rugs these smaller figures differ most strikingly, and are well worth study while still they adhere to traditional pattern. Mr. I. W. Bookwalter, in describing the weaving done by the Turcoman girls on the plains of Tartary, writes : * " The Turcoman scatters his tents at wide intervals throughout the country he occupies. These tents are round, from fifteen to thirty feet in diameter, and in exterior aspect are anything but at- tractive, being often weather-worn and dingy. In passing into it no change can be more startling. It is like the rapid shifting of a scene in the theatre, so sudden is the transformation. It is difficult to conceive anything more exquisite than the interior one often sees in the tent of a well-to-do Turcoman. The floor is covered with carpets and rugs of beautiful designs and exquisite colouring. The walls are encircled with lovely hangings and tapestries and the door shielded by portieres of richest design, all of which is the handiwork of this singular race. The women carry into advanc- *" Siberia and Central Asia.' TURCOMAN RUGS 217 ing years the remnants of the grace and beauty that marked the vigourous period of their lives. Their costumes are of graceful design, richly embroidered, and of enchanting colouring the invari- able product of their own hands. " Being anxious to see how the beautiful carpets and rugs were produced which connoisseurs so highly esteem as the richest pro- duct of Eastern textile art, I visited quite a number of homes for that purpose. The smaller rugs are woven in the tents occupied by the family, but for the larger ones a temporary canopy is erected near by. The ground is covered by some old carpet or other pro- tection for the future fabric. Two poles, of a length suited to the width of the carpet to be made, are placed at a distance apart to correspond with its length. From one pole to the other the warp is extended and spread to suit the fineness of the carpet. The warp is made taut by twisting one of the poles, which are securely staked to the ground, to prevent them being drawn together and to preserve the necessary tightness. As the only remaining mech- anism is a heavy metallic comb, used from time to time to drive the pile firmly together, it will be seen that the rude simplicity of their appliances is only equalled by the marvellous results produced by it. The work is done almost wholly by women, and most generally by young girls. The most astounding thing in the whole process is that no pattern whatever is used, the women relying wholly upon their memory and the eye for the arrangement of colours and development of the pattern and designs. " It is at once apparent to any one at all versed in this art that the modern product is vastly inferior to that of the olden time. They themselves are fully aware of this ; for, when displaying a sample, if you ask them if it is an antique, they ruefully shake their heads, as if regretting to confess that they no longer create those miracles of texture and colour of their ancestors. It is well-nigh impossible to obtain superior examples of the old work here, so thoroughly have the Persian, Armenian, and other mer- chants searched the country. " In Turcomania, cutting in various directions through the tree- less and almost trackless waste, are camel trails on which, under a cloudless sky and over burning sands, can be seen long caravans of 2>8 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK camels plodding their drowsy, solemn way to distant lands beyond, with which they hold a rude though not unimportant commerce. The Turcomanians have a singular though truly chivalrous cus- tom of naming their women, the name being usually that of a flower, its colour, or some feature of it. The widow of the last reigning Khan of Turcomania is called by the Tartars ' Kuldja Khan,' which literally means ' the flower of the Khan'. " In this long quotation a glimpse of life in a remote quarter of the globe is given, for which those who cannot travel are greatly indebted. The fact that specimens of ancient Turcoman weaves are quite as apt to be found in the Occident as in the Orient is made very apparent by Mr. Bookwalter's statements, and the obligation imposed upon the student becomes greater with this realization. The output of the dis- trict may soon, as with that of other places, come under strictly commercial control, and not only will the market be flooded with crude modern specimens, but deviations from tribal designs will doubtless also result. One of the choicest methods of making the weav- ings of Turcomania still more beautiful is to throw in the high lights in silk of a rose pink, which shines out with star-like radiance from the more sombre shades used in Bokhara rugs. In antique specimens this peculiarity lends a rare charm to choice possessions, and is greatly admired and sought by lovers of the beautiful. The name " Kchatchli-Bokhara " is given to a variety of Turcoman rugs in which the field is crossed both horizontally and perpendicularly by bands which carry designs similar to those ordinarily found in bor- BUG-PLATE XXXII SHIRAZ RUG It UG-FLA TE XXXII SH1RAZRUG Oriental Expert's Description " c 7 HIS rug is of very fine texture, is very thin, -*- and much like a shawl. As such it was used as a winter-hanging or drapery in some palace of the beautiful and important city of Shiraz. "Such rugs as this made Shiraz famous. They were made for private use with the great- est of patience and care, only the finest quali- ties of selected life-wool and the very best of dyes — such as were used for making valuable rugs in the olden time— being used in their manufacture, "Shiraz or Mecca rugs as well finished and as rich in material and colours as this cannot easily be excelled in effects. They are silky, durable, and beautifid. This specimen, though old, is well preserved and is a very precious an- tique rug.'''' Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. RUG-PLATE XXXI I TURCOMAN RUGS 2.9 der stripes, dividing the field into four sections, which bear candelabra and plant forms. In these Kchatchli- Bokharas the designs found in embroideries to which allusion has already been made are often faithfully copied, and one intent upon tracing the migration of sun-motifs in symbolic ornament may well secure Tur- coman illustrations of primitive thought. Turcoman prayer-rugs abound, as the Mohammedan religion finds full expression in the old city of Bok- hara, where there are three hundred mosques, and thirty colleges where the faithful are educated. The prayer-rug design differs from those used by the Mohammedans in western Asia, as the niche is not so prominent a feature, and the whole make-up of the design is not as largely dependent upon it as in rugs of Asia Minor and the Caucasus district. -.ui. Turcoman red is at its heaviest and deep- IRbiva . . . . .../ est in the rugs known m America as Khiva J and Afghan rugs. Larger figures than are outlined in the field in Bokhara rugs hold in them designs of quite a different nature from those that give individuality to those well-known fabrics. The octagon reigns supreme in both but rarely in the so- called Khiva design is the slightest suggestion of animal form in the light and dark patches that appear in their respective places at the upper left-hand and lower right-hand corners of the octagons. A reddish orange colour used for the light shades in Afghan rugs renders them most objectionable to many who otherwise would more often purchase them, but in the main the entire pile strongly maintains an all-over red effect whatever the detail of colour may 22o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK be. Afghan rugs are made of goats' hair and the fringe reveals the beautiful quality of the carefully prepared material, which even in heavy carpets is fine and silky. The lustre which some of the antique Afghans possess lends a charm which is incomparable. The borders, which are so distinctive and important in Persian rugs, are less noticeable in those of Khiva ; but they are of great significance, because, as in all Turcoman weaves, they are of tribal import. The introduction of blue and green greatly enhances the beauty of the colour schemes in Afghan and Khiva rugs, for, though the prevailing hue is always red, when diagnosing the pattern it is found that there is almost a kaleidoscopic effect about the details which lends an indescribable charm to the whole. We rarely find an Afghan prayer-rug, though, when occasionally we do, it proves entrancing because of the colour scheme, which excludes every colour but black from the tree pattern traced in bold outline on a field of solid ruby red. Tall and straight, without vestige of leaf or blossom, the tree and its many branches are unlike any other that appears in woven fabrics, and one might readily believe that the poplar of the oasis, as probably it was, gave inspiration to the designer. A feature that distinguishes Turcoman rugs from all others is the wide webbing which extends beyond the pile, and through it lines of another colour find their way from side to side. Glossy, lustrous, rich in tone, and KalUCMStan with heavy pile> Baluchistan rugs are "*U(JS never confounded with other fabrics. TURCOMAN RUGS 221 When first they came to America they were called " constellation rugs," for in very many of the antiques, upon dull bluish red, were easily traced white stars that followed well-known constellations in pattern by tying, here and there, pure white wool knots on the dark surface of the field. The seven stars of Ursa- Major were among those most frequently represented. At the present time, even in modern fabrics, occa- sional white knots are tied, but it is never possible to detect in them any definite intention or significance. Erroneously, but very naturally, Baluchistan rugs have been called " blue Bokharas," for, though a pre- dominence of blue distinguishes them from other Tur- coman fabrics, the general colour red prevails, which has given style to the rugs of the entire district east and north of eastern Persia. Under the name " blue Bokhara " these rugs have been marketed in towns far north of their place of manufacture, and we have yet to discover whether we owe the name to some enter- prising agent or thoughtless Occidental. However much at fault the individual may have been in giving the name to Baluchistan rugs, he succeeded in so impressing upon the imagination an idea of what these heavy blue-red fabrics were that many who despair of ever knowing anything about Persian or Turkish rugs will select Baluchistans from among a host of other rugs and call them " blue Bokharas." «, t ^ Rugs distinctly Turcoman in colour, and J0omu& . f . r y . , . .. ' „_ yet showing Caucasian elements that none ■Rugs ; ., ,. t , , . .. , could dispute, have become known through trade classifications as products of the Yomud tribes who live to the east of the Caspian Sea, and whose 222 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK designs show a mixture of Turcoman and Caucasian motifs. These fabrics exist in large numbers in homes where they are called "yellow" or "brown Bokharas " by those who, recognizing their kin to the rugs made in central Asia, have not yet been dis- turbed by the strong Caucasian elements in the bor- der stripes. The plum-red of Yomud rugs is one of their charms, and a blush that seems at times to par- take of the nature of a shadow gives them a rare quality which is very beautiful. Designs vary so much in these rugs that it is misleading to fasten upon any one feature as indicative of a special style, though it is safe to say that elongated diamond forms more often appear than the octagons which are more truly the property of the Tekke Turcoman weavers. Pile, warp, and woof of Yomud rugs are of fine hair or wool, and they invite consideration and admiration. With an ever-increasing demand for reliable infor- mation, it is most satisfactory to observe that buyers in the Orient are classifying much more definitely than ever they did the rugs that they are collecting, and new names are constantly finding their way into trade vocabularies. „ . Through the products of Samarkand, Yarkand and Kashgar we are led into the IMUJ3 p ar £ ast) anc j there we find an entirely new style of rug to analyze and locate in the product of the Chinese loom. Weaving is considered in China not only an accomplishment, but a necessary part of a woman's duty. " When a woman weaves not, some one suffers cold," is written in the sacred instructions of Yung-Ching (1723-1736) and long years and cen- RUG-PLATE XXXIII SENNEH RUG BUG-PLATE XXXIII SENNEH RUG Loaned by Mr. James W. Ellsworth Oriental Expert's Description " CT^HIS is an absolutely- perfect specimen of ■*" Semieh weaving, showing the Herati pat- tern in the design in the field of the rug.' 1 '' S. S. Costikyan. RUG-PLATE XXXIII TURCOMAN RUGS 223 turies before his time the cultivation of the mulberry- tree and the breeding of silkworms was advised by an early empress whose memory has always been revered and has served to stimulate others " to give to the CYCLE OF CATHAY. nation an example of a thrifty wife." Legend has given to Chinese art and ornament representations of the star goddess known as the " spinning damsel," who, when sent to earth on a mission, fell in love with a cowherd. She was recalled to the sky and her earthly 224 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK husband died of a broken heart. He had, however, lived so good a life that he was changed into a star and given a place in the heavens ; but between him and his wife stretched the Milky Way, over which only once a year was a bridge formed by magpies. Over this bridge the spinning damsel crossed to the cowherd. " On the evening of the seventh day of the seventh month Chinese women offer sacrifices to the spinning damsel and pray that she will vouchsafe to them skill in needlework. Then they go to the upper story if there be one of the house, and endeavour to thread seven needles with coloured thread by the light of the moon. If they succeed, it is understood to be a favourable omen from the goddess.' Traditions have been carefully preserved and given to the world at large about all of the domestic arts practised by the women of China, and still very little definite information can be secured recrardins: the ear- liest methods of making pile fabrics. Though velvet has been made for many centuries in both China and Persia, it has not yet been determined to which coun- try it owes its origin. Though Persia claims the invention of the knot-carpet as her own, yet no other country has handled wools with more individuality than China in the production of carpets. True to traditional patterns, Chinese weavers simply used knots to form a background for the outlined orna- ments and symbols that at once designated for whom and for what purpose the fabrics were intended. Painted upon vases, woven in tapestries, and embroi- dered upon silks, the same patterns are found that appear in rugs, and a hundred years ago every one of them had absolute meaning, and garments, hangings, RUG-PLATE XXXIV PERSIAN SILK RUG MUG-PLATE XXXIV PERSIAN SILK RUG Size: 6.4X4.4 Oriental Expert's Description " c l HIS rug is about Uco-hundred years old, and originally belonged to a very wealthy and distinguished family in Anatolia.' 1 '' Hadji Ephraim Benguiat. RUG-PLATE XXXIV TURCOMAN RUGS 225 and rugs were easily read. When Chinese rugs first found their way to the Occident they were classed as Turcoman if their colours suggested fabrics of middle Persia, or as Japanese if of blue and white without any regard to weave and materials. Eventually blue and white woollen rugs were found to be Chinese, while most of the cotton and jute rugs turned out to be of Japanese origin. Later, through close examina- tion of the patterns in rugs that claimed to be Chinese, brought to this country by those who had purchased them in China, experts began to identify fabrics as Samarkand and Yarkand which had hitherto been classed as Persian or Indian, and Chinese rugs assumed an importance in western markets that until then had not belonged to them. Covering the field with a network of " grains-of- rice " pattern in dull white through which a pinkish- brown ground colour is seen, many Samarkand rugs reveal their origin by their designs. Adherence to belief in the sacred number five caused early workers to break the fretwork which covered the field with five medallions, one in the centre of the rug, and one in each corner, bearing either dragon and animal forms or symbolic floral designs. When, later, the field of Samarkand rugs was left plain, a floral vine tracery took the place of the honeycomb effect formerly pro- duced, and scrollwork based on cloud and joo-e forms were finally disposed upon the field with little refer- ence or fidelity to Chinese symbolic pattern. In blue and white woollen rugs made in China there has never been sufficient deviation from significant and meaningful designs to cause any confusion in 226 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK the minds of intelligent observers. Though repre- sented conventionally, peonies, chrysanthemums, and lotus blossoms are easily distinguished from each other, and the citron, known as Buddha's hand, and the peach of longevity, with varieties of fungus growth, are distributed over the field either singly or in groups. Bats and butterflies hover over and between circular forms of the character Fun, or happiness. There are several ways of writing this character, and it very often appears in rugs, as does that which represents good luck and is known as Shoiv of which there are a hundred forms. The two forms • i * 4 CONVENTIONALIZED BUTTERFLY FORMS FOUND IN RUG BORDERS. of Show that most often appear in rugs are found in all-over decorations of porcelains and as embroidered designs on silk. Five bats figure as emblem of happi- ness in the central medallion of rugs which are bor- dered with narrow stripes bearing conventionalized butterfly designs. Of the designs in no other part of the Orient can as truthful information be obtained at the present time as of those that decorate Chinese objects, and knowl- edge of Turkish and Persian ornament in no wise TURCOMAN RUGS 227 helps one to interpret Chinese patterns. Cloud, flame, dragon motifs, and frets built up on the Swastika, the knot of destiny, and the T and Y forms figure largely in the decoration of Chinese rugs, just as they do upon the porcelains of the empire. In some Yar- kand fabrics the field is of a solid-coloured tan which very strongly suggests camels' hair upon which blue and white designs are most intricately wrought. It was thought at one time that the western influence noticeable in Samarkand rugs was not to be found in either Kashgar or Yarkand rugs, nor in those made in China itself. The appearance, however, of old Chinese designs in fabrics said by connoisseurs to be, strictly speaking, of Samarkand weave, leads us to believe that antique specimens were more apt to adhere to typical Chinese designs than those made later. The appearance of the fillet in Mongolian ornament is fre- quent and of great interest. Surrounding, as it does, all sorts of sacred objects, its meaning is the same as the halo in Christian art, though it is used in China to refer not only to gods, goddesses, and saints, but to the emanation from any object of its sacred and bene- ficial properties. The power to shed abroad radiance, healing, intelligence, or attributes of any kind is typi- fied by the fillet. CHAPTER XXI INDIAN RUGS In approaching the study of Indian fabrics we find that all preconceived notions of Hindu ornament must become subservient to the easily proved fact that into the great Indian peninsula at the present time have crept influences of every kind that have so swayed the native workers that everything which is now made there partakes of the varied nature of all that has made the East what it is. Indian art has always observed structural lines, and in it one feels the strength of an underlying plan, and a confidence in the " detail " of finish that reveals the patience and skill of the craftsman, as well as the power of the artist whose mind has grasped the con- structional features of whatever object he is creating. The lines once determined and the place to be filled selected, a broad outline scheme is devised which lifts into their proper places the extreme limits of the design, while the patient attention to minute details fills every inch of the scheme with network and tracery of the most intricate sort. In no country is there so much difference between the art of the native craftsman born of generations of Hindus, and the art of the conquerors; and while the art of India is largely Mohammedan, the Moslem features ■J} z 5 1 Q ^ 55 •W 03 -4 W r i ft < ^ pi »» Ph « 55 «! H pa INDIAN RUGS 229 are treated very differently in that country to what they are in others. The making of piled fabrics is not native to India, though that country has always been famous for its weaving of warp and woof of the finest as well as of the coarsest and most effective nature. Fifty years ago the rugs of India were easily dis- tinguished by their fidelity to method and design. This is not true at the present time, however, though the English government has done much toward estab- lishing as truly " East Indian " that which has been fostered by judicious patronage, and the scholars sent into India for special study and to acquire treasures for the home museums have opened up much of infi- nite interest. It is customary to lament the some- what destructive nature of European methods in the East, but it is well to acknowledge our indebtedness to all effort to preserve intact that which seems never to be reproduced in absolute purity. In the study of the industrial arts of all countries we find that the name of some monarch who very particularly favoured their development has come down to us in connection with objects made under his royal patronage, so that finally we learn to know cer- tain methods, patterns, and styles by the name of the great patron back in the years, who served his day by advancing the broadest principles of art. As Shah Abbas was to Persia, so was Akbar to India in the sixteenth century. It was during the reign of Em- peror Akbar that Queen Elizabeth sent the first expedition to India and founded the great East India Company. Later, in 1614, when Sir Thomas Roe 230 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK was sent as first ambassador from England, Shah Jehan, the builder of the famous Taj at Agra, and also of the peacock throne so often referred to in descriptions of Indian art, was emperor of India. The dreamy mysticism of East Indian thought and philosophy penetrates the most hidden realms of art life among the Hindus, and even the most casual study of the fabrics of the East is useless without some sort of conception of the thought-life. This we cannot too often admit, and, as our minds broaden out so as to comprehend the different attitudes of the minds of men toward interests and problems with which we are ourselves struggling, we become fitted to receive from others that without which no foreign art can be interpreted. While we have all become more or less familiar with the names of cities and provinces in the rug- manufacturing districts of Persia and Asia Minor, it is not customary to mention the rugs of India by other than the one comprehensive term " East Indian." As the art of making "knot carpet" is one brought into the country by the Mohammedans from Persia, the workers at first dubbed all pile carpets "Persian," because made by Persians in the coun- try where either their conquests or their religion had driven them. We find that native Hindu art is very different from that developed during the later Mohammedan ascendency in all things artistic. Where the former was heavy, broad, and horizontal in effect, the latter was light, airy, and graceful. Where the former was covered with images and attributes of native gods, the latter, avoiding the image, indulged in INDIAN RUGS 231 flowery arabesques and caligraphic curves. In com- bination the two became foils for each other, and com- bined features that enhanced the solid nature of the former and the slender beauty of the latter. The method of manufacture that distinguishes Indian carpets from others has a certain stereotyped and mechanical pre- cision that reveals itself at first glance, but which defies analysis. A similarity to the patterns of Persia being easily detected, curiosity is aroused, and calls for examination of the detail of ornament. There are almost always some features distinctly " Indian," by which the judgment may be biassed, and finally the Hindu elements that exist in the art of India are recognized. We look to the native handicraft of India for guidance into the labyrinth of Hindu orna- ment, and a few broad principles help immensely in our conception of its general style. If we were dependent only upon texture, we should more quickly learn differences, and should detect the vast number of subterfuges to which weavers resort in order to cheapen their products and enhance their profits. At our first glance at a fabric we are at once confronted by pattern, making it almost impossible for us to locate the production. Take, for example, a rug which is so absolutely Mongolian in design that only close analysis of the weave convinces us of its Indian origin. Coarse wool for the knots, and a loosely woven cotton foundation, added to other dis- tinctive features, such as the insufficient overlapping of the pile, and the position of the knots on the warp revealed by examination of the back of the rug, force the fabric into the Indian division, though the cloud, 232 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK the bat, and the encircling border fret are motifs of Chinese ornament pure and simple. We may more safely consider design on any other objects of Indian art than on rugs ; for, since the English occupation, the weavers have been controlled by European and American masters, and designs most popular in the commercial centres of the world are woven by natives who give their services for a small return. Upon articles made for native use, — brasses, jewellery, pottery, and particularly in printed textiles, — we find vigourous Hindu ornament ; and even in so called grotesques we are able to study the differ- ence between the Hindu imagination, that bows independently before the idol whose attributes are made manifest by pos- itions and symbols, and that of the Mohammedan worker, which shows the jain buddhist symbol found in dignified recognition of TEXTILES. . , . ... the leadership of a pro- Swastika suggests grades of existence, * x and four directions. Three jewels denote:— phet wllO SO Cai'efullv right belief: — right knowledge: — right con " ' duct Crescent indicates expanding power WO rked Out the laWS ' of of the soul in upward direction. Upper jewel is emblem souls life apart from matter, life that everything bears evidence of allegiance to accepted form. MUG-PLATE XXXV SAMARKAND RUG RUG-PLATE XXXV SAMARKAND RUG Size: 13. X10.6 Loaned by Kent-Costikyan Author's Description T Nthis carpet are to be found Chinese motifs -* which have been distributed in various bor- der stripes after the Persian fashion. The sacred mountain arises from the waves on either side and on both ends of the rug in the broad outside border. Cloud forms in an entire band are separated from the swastika fret by plain stripes of solid colour. Narrower frets bound the inner floral border, which is not Mongolian in style. In conventionalizing the flower motifs in the centre and in the corner designs, the weaver has adapted the butterfly pattern to his needs, and skilfully rounded the outlines of the medallion, ivhich ordinarily ivould be rendered in octagon form. Rl G-PLA IK XXXV INDIAN RUGS 233 Consideration of the underlying principles that con- trol individual workers will invariably assist in the examination of objects. Even in modern carpets, in which European designs are copied, native workman- ship reveals itself not only in the handling of materials, but in precision in following patterns. These modern carpets of India are easier to identify than any we meet in the ordinary traffic of life ; but, however attractive and useful they may be in furnishing the home of to-day- with satisfactory floor-coverings, they are of no importance to the student of historic orna- ment and symbolism. It is at the same time both wise and necessary to separate the weavings of India from those of Persia which they copied. The royal ceremonies observed in India have from the beginning of time called for the most gorgeous fittings, and native methods of decorating textiles of smooth surface were copied in pile fabrics when the knot carpet was first made in India. In costumes and household fittings Indian ornament is found untouched by outside influences, revealing to those who have studied the caste system much that it is important to know. The social and religious institutions of the country have divided the population into four castes : (1) the Brahmins, or priests; (2) the warriors and princes ; (3) the husbandmen ; (4) the labourers. All the ceremonial life of India is based on the laws and principles contained in ancient Sanskrit writings, and the epic poems of the Hindus relate to the strug- gles of their deities with warring and powerful evil influences, to their various incarnations, and to the emblems and symbols by which they are revealed to 234 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK man. Many of the legends most often pictured in the art of India art are very revolting, but because they embody both religious and historical knowledge they are constantly pictured in Hindu art. The crude primitive way has always obtained of expressing power by strange physical forms, attributes, and contortions. Many bodies, arms, hands, and eyes representing Omnipresence, Omnipotence, and Omni- science. " The embodied spirit has a thousand heads, A thousand eyes, a thousand feet, around On every side enveloping the earth, Yet filling space no larger than a span. He is himself this very universe-: He is whatever is, has been, and shall be, He is the lord of immortality."* All of these considerations are quite necessary in approaching the art of one country after studying that ot another. The eye is apt to note likenesses without detecting differences, and the culture which makes the Occidental keenly alive to that which indi- cates foreign craftsmanship is sometimes at fault in classing merely as Oriental the productions of peoples so different from each other that it is at least incon- siderate to monopolize the work of their hands with- out recognizing the impulses that prompted it. T Forty years ago, coarse carpets came to this country in small quantities bearing TKUCjS t j ie name f Calcutta. Many of these fabrics are still to be seen in the homes where they then found resting-places. They were made of coarse, * Vedic Hymn. I N D I A N R U G S 235 heavy cotton or jute warp, tied with knots of yak's hair of dull yellowish brown colour. Several threads of woof were thrown across after each row of knots tied, and the carpets were very loose in texture. In other varieties the entire pile was dyed black, and crossed at regular intervals with a trellis effect in natural- coloured yak's hair. The field in these carpets was surrounded by one very narrow confining border bear- ing an insignificant pattern ; but a pleasing sobriety about the rugs themselves makes them recognizable when from time to time their hiding-places are dis- covered. Whether these rugs were made in Calcutta or bore the name of their market-place is not now known. Following closely upon these dull-coloured yak's hair rugs came a fearful expression of the combina- tion of Oriental and European talent. Wonderful indeed were the rugs, sold as " Indian," which bore as the only ornament upon a dark background a huge bouquet made according to English regulations. These bouquets were strongly suggestive of those worked in cross-stitch upon canvas in the Berlin-wool hearthrugs which at the expense of eyesight and unlimited time had been made during the 1830- 50 period by the ladies of Europe. The so-called "Calcutta rugs" were native East Indian products. Those decorated with large bouquets were foreign monstrosities. Ever since that time the same sort of thing has gone on in India. Brain control of native fingers has given floor-coverings, but has done away with works of sentiment. One interest need not con- flict with the other, neither should one be mistaken 236 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK for the other. Our avowed purpose in analytical study is so to familiarize ourselves with standards and types that the individual rug may stand as a work of art and object of sentiment, and be studied as such. Xabore an& , J * a ? nade ™ P T ' tho " gh they ! ,ave _. _ often been described as being without Bora IRugs . , ( ■ ,. .. , , . v v any evidence or individual taste or preference in the selection of materials or patterns, were not utterly lacking in interest when they first appeared in India. There was something about them that completely distinguished their designs from the Persian patterns they copied. Whether it was the handling of curves and vines in the design, which showed the peculiar ability of the native to consider structure as well as details in planning things artistic, or whether in the early management there was more confidence placed in the native worker than at the present time, cannot be clearly proved. As the car- pets reached England, however, they carried strong marks of Indian manufacture, and a mixture of dyes which, if chemical in part, at least adhered to native usage in producing a blue that had a distinct quality about its almost black colouring. Old Agra and Lahore carpets introduced to most of the present-day owners of them the interesting manufactures of India, and the art and industry of that land have infatuated enthusiasts who treasure the few rare authenticated antique specimens they possess as distinct from anything obtainable anywhere outside of India, — the land where neither Buddhist nor Mohammedan has succeeded in driving out ancient beliefs ; where the mystic teaches control of the M UG-PLA TE XXX VI PERSIAN SILK MOSQUE RUG B LG-PLA TE XXXVI PERSIAN SILK MOSQUE RUG Author's Description TN this rug caligraphic ornamentation is so -* combined with floral forms that it is abso- lutely disguised until close scrutiny discovers Arabic curves in the centred ornament, which in conventionalized tree form is lifted into •prominence upon a field of deep rich red most beautifully shaded. There is much significance and interest in the treatment of the flower formS which decorate the base of the prayer-niche. RUG-PLATE XXXVI INDIAN RUGS 237 spirit, while the fakir indulges in disgusting acts of penance which he considers meritorious ; and which has given to ornament link after link of mean- ingful symbols which, forged by Brahman, Buddhist, and Mohammedan in turn, have made a chain of evi- dence by which ancient thought is connected with modern research. It is to be hoped that some day more will be understood than now is of the less gro- tesque and more ornate art of the Hindus. Early Christian writers about "heathen peoples and heathen gods" have exaggerated all that is awful in Oriental art, and while such evil undoubtedly exists it should not be dwelt upon to the exclusion of all recognition of that which is good. The name of Agra is connected with the great monarch Akbar, who built the castle of Agra for his royal residence. ] Over one hundred years ago, in an account of a returned traveller, was written the follow- ing report for the East India Company in England. "The Emperor Akbar, born in 1541, is the favourite of Euro- pean writers, and he deserves the praises, not of Europeans alone, but'of mankind at large. There is a principle of vicissitudes in human occurrences that generally causes men, eminently prosper- ous and great, to rise from the cradle of turmoil and calamity. Of this the Emperor Akbar is a proof. Born in circumstances more adventurous than are usually devised by the penman of ro- mance, and nursed amid armed contention, he stepped forth pre- pared to meet the rudest shocks of unpropitious fortune, endued with self-command sufficient to resist the more dangerous bland- ishments of success. That vice of nobler souls, ambition, was perhaps the failing of Akbar. The darling object of his medita- tions was the subjugation of the whole peninsula of India. It would wear the appearance of a faulty attachment to a partic- ular character if we endeavoured to entirely excuse this seeming 238 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK thirst after power. But Akbar in the great majority of his actions assuredly studied the advancement of human happiness with views so exalted and comprehensive that they often soared above the possible accompaniment of popular capacity. Akbar resided at Agra, which he preferred to Delhi, and bent his attention in times of peace to the encouragement of the arts. It is to be regretted that the horrors of war should interrupt deliberations so univer- sally beneficial as those of Akbar. Various revolts among the nobles of the court arrested the career of, his vast schemes for the improvement of humankind." \ ^^ The study of Oriental rugs must necessarily be a study of history. Akbar's influence upon the art and industry of his time antedated the enthusiasm of Shah Jehan, who in 1634 formed the resolution to rebuild the ancient capitol of Hindustan in a manner likely to celebrate his name among posterity. The most skilful architects and masons for this undertak- ing were procured from various distances. The Em- peror drew the outlines of his new city on a large plain on the western banks of the Jumna : and in con- structing it made use of the same sort of red stone, of the hardness and colour of jasper, brought from the quarries of Fettipore, which Akbar had employed in building the castle of Agra. The city was fortified with twelve lofty towers and had as many magnificent gates : the principal gate fronted the palace and was of uncommon magnitude and grandeur. The palace itself surpassed everything of the kind in India, the walls of the principal apartments being lined with mar- ble, and the ceilings of many of them overlaid with plates of silver. The grand mosque was also with- out a rival, being encrusted within and without with marble of various colours. Shah Jehan's principal 4 INDIAN RUGS 239 care was to make two gardens of inconceivable mag- nificence, called the Gardens of Shalimer. Here were grottoes of great extent and depth, where the beams of the sun never penetrated ; canals of fairest water, filled with gold and silver fishes ; and fountains that, forever playing, diffused a refreshing coolness around ; while the choicest flowers and fruits of Asia, by their fragrance and their flavour, on every side ministered to the gratification of the senses. Shah Jehan had a natural taste for voluptuous magnificence : a long list of plundered provinces rendered up their dear- est treasures, and the palace blazed with tributary \diamonds. " By Shah Jehan was constructed the famous Tukt Taous or peacock throne,* the body of which was solid gold encrusted with diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and sapphires. It was called the peacock throne from having the figures of two peacocks standing behind it, with their tails expanded, which were studded with vari- ous jewels to represent the life. Between the two peacocks stood a parrot of the ordinary size, cut out of one emerald. A most sumptuous gallery was likewise to be seen in Delhi. The interior of this building the Emperor had intended to cover entirely with a kind of lattice-work of emeralds and rubies, so dis- posed as to present the appearance of grapes in the different stages of growth, from early green to the deep red of maturity. This plan was commenced, and three stalks of a vine, with their leaves and fruit, were constructed, but to complete this dazzling vineyard was found impossible, as the known world did not con- tain sufficient jewels for the purpose. The design, however, merits praise as one of the most gorgeous projects that ever entered the human imagination." f * Now in the royal treasury at Teheran, having been taken there as spoil by Nadir Shah in 1739. f From a book of travel written by an unknown author in 181 2. 2 4 o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK That the carpets and hangings for some of the buildings erected for these famous monarchs were magnificent enough to hold their own in the midst of such luxurious surroundings argues well for the time and labour spent upon them. During the sixteenth century Persian designs were favoured by the royal patron of the arts, and ever since, with little deviation, the East Indian has built upon the art of Persia in the manufacture of knot carpets. Purely Hindu designs are recognizable when they appear, and analysis will eventually enable the student to distinguish between native and borrowed art. CHINESE RUG OHOU'LXG in the ®juisifa border the design *} used on the bottom of the robes of official mcnuloriiis. and w the inner border, a use of the T 'pattern very commonly fvuud in Komar- Jcdnd rugs. Ljfl A L .BOOK . .*> ct ' s for some of the for these famous monarchs were Id their own in the midst of suci> argues well for the time m. ; century Persian designs were • n of the arts, and ever ation, the East Indian has built of Persia in the manufacture of knot recognizable when — -, — app — ■- ■''■■:'■ i.-') 1 .-:- ■;"; f./cntuallv e nable the native and borrowed aA* 'tsb-KxS sbtauo ->A\ s« YY/A'IIOHO fo'u% \o ^Aa A\ \o mottod aM no baau & d nah-tod tuihi 9i \i no \mu, ,8ibnnj« tDHttft ifi b*w©\ \v\kojwuoo y.vn in attjx^T $&\ CHAPTER XXII LEGENDS AND MYTHS THAT MAY BE ILLUSTRATED BY DESIGNS IN RUGS By limiting the subject to the selection of those legends, and those alone, which have found illustra- tion in symbolic design, and have passed from that to pattern with a gradual loss of meaning, we may select some about which there is sufficient authority and evidence to incite us to the study and analysis of forms that have become what they are more naturally than we would at first suspect. Such, for example, are the legends, both sacred and secular, about flowers, trees, birds, animals, colours, etc, which have appealed through the ages to the myth-loving peoples of the Orient. With acknowledgments where it is possible to se- cure the permission of compilers and writers, we may gather together, for purposes of comparison, a few of the vast number of myths and stories which have materially influenced the patterns of rug-weaving people. The modern student oftentimes finds it pos- sible to interpret a design which the weavers them- selves did not understand, because their work has to them been only an idle copy of a lifeless pattern which to us is evidently an evolved design which once was symbol. One by one these forms are being traced, and it is wise to insist repeatedly upon the 243 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK principle we have avowed, of never trying to force meaning into design, but to wait for it to awaken recognition in our intelligence. By a definite mental process we become equipped, before we are aware, with power to discern the Ori- ental methods of manifesting thought in art. >rru£ Foremost among flower forms the lotus K ->fn« *^ tS * tS re S a l l iea d, supreme from east to west throughout the Orient, where it has furnished motifs for many existing patterns from time immemo- rial. In order to recognize and appreciate the conven- tionalized ornament, which is historic, one must be able to distinguish between it and that which is mean- ingless and unintentional, for the most sacred things of eastern Asia have been lightly handled by the Moham- medan, and things of the utmost importance in Tur- key have been falsely construed and copied in China and India. Thousands of many-handed idols are pictured in Hindu and Buddhist art, which look alike to the casual observer, and yet, after we have learned that attributes are individual possessions, and that it is given to but few saints to carry the lotus in an exten- ded hand, we begin to ask the full significance of the flower. Seated upon the lotus-flower throne, Buddha and many of the Bodhisattwas calmly smile upon our ignor- ance, but after a while we discover that no image rests upon the floral base without its right so to do. Of late years art has felt it legitimate and right to question what Theology has felt it best to pass by without comment, and the Light which in its shining a; < < o a, 73 3 LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 243 has illumined other races than our own seems indeed to surround with a halo of significance much that until within the present century has been considered beyond the limits of orthodox reverence. BUDDHIST GODDESS HOLDING LOTUS-FLOWER AND OTHER EMBLEMS. Through successive eras the ornament that has evolved from the lotus has been accredited to first one and then another country. As we find it in our 244 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK modern rugs, it is entirely separated from any evident connection with past thought about it, and still it lies with those who are interested to rescue what little is accurate from the great mass of speculation regarding it. There is a vast difference between the art that grows upon a dead idea, and that which feeds upon living thought and belief, and we may learn much for ourselves when it is possible to find that which is still vital, such as we m a y independ- ently discover in the Buddhist use of the lotus at the present time, and in the atti- tude of mind of those who place the same depend- ence upon its significance to- day as others have done in the past. Although Buddhist thought originated in India, it is now only possible to trace the forms which it has adopted in places where it is still practised. From these existing sources we learn that there has ever been that about the lotus to lead men to associate it with the beginning of material things. It is repre- sented as springing from the "cauldron of the ele- ments," and its power to hold its seeds within itself LOTUS ARISING FROM THE CAULDRON OF THE ELEMENTS 11 UG-PLA TE XXX VII PERSIAN SILK RUG RUG-PLATE XXXVII PERSIAN SILK RUG Description ivill be found on page 289. RUG-PLATE XXXVII ASSYRIAN TREATMENT OF LOTUS »aK LEGENDSANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED245 until the new plant has developed sufficiently to burst its bonds, and, as a full fledged flower, to float away from the parent plant, has made it an emblem of immor- tality. In form the symbolic nature of the flower has been utilized by more than one primitive re- ligion. The calyx of the lotus is triangular while its base is circu- lar, and such a combination has always been adopted to represent a union of spirit and form, trinity and eternity. Growing, as it does, from impure surround- ings, while it preserves its chaste beauty, the lotus has figured as an emblem of purity, and without doubt such significance, though perchance secondary to the student of symbolism, has obtained in great measure in the adoption of the flower in design. As ornament, we find the Japanese, the Chinese, and the East Indian handling the motifs in different ways, while in the western Orient there prevails even now a form inherited from the ancient Assyrians, and the lotus in Egyptian design is so universal as to admit of distinct and individual treatment. In ornament which we may readily trace in rugs, we find the lotus handled in both naturalistic and onventional forms. Used naturally, we find it in both circular and profile form, — as simple flower, as emblem, and as sceptre or wand : and in conventionalized EGYPTIAN TREAT- MENT OF LOTUS 246 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK rnmwm ornament, in both circular and profile forms, it figures as flower, wheel, and medallion. The seed and leaf of the lotus appear less frequently than the flower as single motifs in illustrations of legends and myths, so that with the exception of the seed-form that is given to the pearl for which the dragon seeks we cannot with certainty point to any con- ventionalized form, other than the flower, as strictly speaking belonging to the lotus. In Indian rugs the broad outline of the lotus leaf is sometimes followed as a structural back-ground for floral ornament that in no wise resembles the actual lotus ; and while it is easy to attribute to the lotus much that looks little like anything, there is so much that is definite that we may resign all that admits of speculation. Very few of the legends of the lotus which have found illustration in the pictorial designs in rugs have been interpreted and authenticated ; such as have been are generally to be traced to a desire to show the power of immortality that the flower posses- ses, and in some mythological patterns we find the cypress-tree of Persia and the lotus of India both illustrating the same thought. The lotus in combination with butterfly and insect forms is sometimes used to tell the story of the LOTUS : PALMATE AND ROSETTE FORMS OF WESTERN ASIA LEGENDSANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED247 Hindu goddess Doorga, who was supposed to have come to earth to avenge the tyranny of the wicked monster kings who craved human sacrifices in the forms of fair maidens. " As she entered the grove, her divine presence, unrivalled charms, and sweet graces, filled the place with a solemn grandeur. The bees and the butterflies forsook the flowers, and taking her for a blooming lotus, began to hover around her person. The white, fragrant lotus, hitherto the pride of the flowers, seeing itself surpassed in beauty by the goddess, fled with shame to lodge in the water for ever. The delicate graceful neck of the goddess drove the swans away into the ponds, lakes, and rivulets. The pearls, finding their pride sadly broken by the bright teeth of the goddess, hid themselves in shells at the bottom of the ocean, the wild deer ran frantic to see her eyes far superior to its own." With numberless such fanciful tales to draw from, the Oriental artist has but to select his wools, erect his loom, stretch his warp, and dream through the days and years, in order to confound us with the com- bined work of his memory, his fancy, and his fingers. Few, indeed, of the vast number of myths and legends which are stored away in the folk-lore of all nations can we be supposed to know, and still less can we hope to find in warp and woof that which will authentically illustrate the few we do know ; but such zest as the effort awakens can be comprehended only by those who have found Arabian, Persian, Indian, Chinese, and Japanese thought manifested in material form. To such the Oriental rug appeals with ever-increas- ing significance, for, in spite of all effort to interpret that which it seems ready to reveal, there is about it 248 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK a baffling resistance which prevents our complete mastery of it, holding in reserve, as it ever does, that which awaits our future consideration. The story of "The Golden Lotus " gives us one of the imaginary reasons for always connecting the eight- petalled blossom with Lord Buddha. " He, the All-Merciful, was wandering in a dreary mountain place when he heard a voice saying, ' Shio-giyo mn-jiyo.' The Lord Shaka was amazed, and wondered who could speak these wonderful words, which, interpreted, mean, ' The outward man- ner is not always an index to the natural disposition.' Looking beneath him, he saw on the precipice below a horrible dragon, which, looking up, uttered the words ' Jc-shio metsn-po' ('All living things are contrary to the law of Buddha.') The dragon then clung closely to the base of the rock, and in a loud voice cried : ' Shio-metsu metsn'-i ' (' All living things must die ! ') To these remarks Lord Buddha answered, ' truly you know the principles that I would teach, tell me how have you learned what it has taken me many years to discover? ' The dragon answered, ' The last truth I shall teach is far more important than the others, but I am hungry, and I cannot divulge that which I would say until my hunger is appeased.' On being asked what he would have to satisfy his hunger, the dragon answered, ' human flesh alone will satisfy me.' To this Lord Buddha responded, ' Though it is forbidden by my religion to sacrifice human life, it is so important that my people learn these wonderful truths that you can tell me, that I offer myself as victim,— now tell me all you know ! ' The monster opened his mouth and uttered the words, (Jaku-metsii I-metsu I ' (' The greatest happiness is experienced after the soul has left the body.') After which, when he had heard the truth, Lord Buddha sprang into the open mouth of the dragon. As he did so the jaws of the monster fell apart and changed into the eight petals of the golden lotus." * Not only in the religion of Buddha, but in various * Greey's " Story of the Golden Lotus." i. IMAGE OF BUDDHA SEATED ( IN LOTUS, 2 Ml DALLION SHOWING EIGHT ATTITUDES OF BUDDHA, 3. THIBETAN PRAYER COPIED IN RUG DESIGNS LEGENDSANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED 2^9 Oriental beliefs, the lotus is used as an emblem of the appearance of the soul, after death, upon the sea of paradise. The flower is carried in funeral proces- sions, and the story of " birth in the pure land " is often pictured in art. When the self within a man awakens to conscious- ness, a lotus bud is supposed to appear on the lotus sea, which remains there until, after life has ceased on earth, the soul of the believer finds its way through the stem of the lotus to its own awaiting bud, which will open at the touch of the soul, admitting it to paradise. " On the moment of entering that peaceful scene, The common material body of men Is exchanged for a body ethereal and bright, That is seen from afar to be glowing with light. Happy they who to that joyful region have gone, In numberless kalpas their time flows on, Around are green woods, and above them clear skies, The sun never scorches, cold winds never rise, And summer and winter are both unknown In the land of the Law and the diamond throne. All errors corrected, all mysteries made clear, Their rest is unbroken by care or by fear, And the truth that before lay in darkness concealed Like a gem without fracture or flaw is revealed." " Every man, it is said, has a lotus in his bosom, which will blossom forth if he will call in the assist- ance of Buddha." To be born in the " pure land " is the hope of those who desire to rise through successive periods of bondage in the flesh to the highest rank of lotus purity. 250 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK The "paradise" of Buddha has given more motifs in art than the more strictly orthodox " Nirvana," and, as our subject deals with manifestations, we must be able to recognize even the side issues of great sub- jects, and the sacred birds and flowers of the "Western Paradise" figure in Buddhist ornament with numberless objects of gold, silver, and precious stone that make beautiful that mythical land. It is perhaps unnecessary to say that the mingling of Christian with native teaching, since the Nestorians and Jesuits carried the Gospel story into China, has greatly puzzled the student of ornament. At the same time it increases the interest of his task, and should convince him that the half has not yet been told of all that will some day illumine the pages of history and interpret the art of to-day. Thibetan Buddhism preserves for us the " lotus prayer," " Om mane padme hum" which, having passed through periods of immense significance pregnant with the most subtle symbolism, has now become an idle sound, repeated as merit, and accepted (let us hope) as worship. " Om mane padme hum," the jewel in the lotus. Hue, in his description of the use of this prayer by the Lamas, tells us that " the doctrine contained in these marvelous words is immense, and the whole life of man is insufficient to realize its complete breadth and depth." He also tells us that the Lamas claim that all living beings are divided into six classes, angels, demons, men, quadrupeds, birds, and reptiles ; and these six classes correspond to the six syllables of the mantra. It is by repeiiting these syllables that A JAPANESE BUDDHIST CONCEPTION OF THE APPEARANCE OF SOULS UPON THE SEA OF PARADISE, EACH HAVING COME THROUGH THE STEM OF A SACRED LOTUS FLOWER By the courtesy of the Open Court Publishing Co. LEGENDSAND M Y THS I LLUSTR ATED 251 men avoid transmigration and rise up in the scale of being till they are absorbed into the universal soul or the grand and eternal essence of Buddha. The Indian god- dess of mercy, better k n o w n to us as " Kwan Yin," who, figuring first as a man and then as a woman deity, has come down to art-lovers having the lotus in her hand, is represented seated or standing upon the lotus, and as the guar- dian of the " propaga- tion vase " from which the lotus-plant issues, ^ having grown from a s~ seed which has been ||j into the lower animals, carefully nurtured. In *| J&A - China Kwan-Yin is supposed to have power to float on a lotus to and from her throne in the happy isles, and to call upon her for assistance is to bring upon the applicant the greatest of BUDDHIST GODDESS OF MERCY HOLDING PROPAGATION VASE. 2 5 2 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK blessings. Kwan-Yin is greatly loved as the " lady of the lotus," and she is often pictured as rescuing souls from purgatory by the use of the sacred flower. One of the " Pa-hsien" or eight Immortals of Taoism, is represented as invariably carrying the lotus flower, A CHINESE PICTURE OF THE GODDESS OF MERCY DELIVERING A SOUL FROM PURGATORY BY THE SACRED LOTUS-FLOWER. which she uses, as does Kwan-Yin, to relieve souls in misery, from distress. An Indian form of the lotus, which gives us a Hindu notion of the universe, is most easily traced in many of the medallions of central Asia. Wheels are often based on the lotus, and even star forms are found in its magic suggestion. A legend of the lotus, as sung by a poet,* tells of the star in the flower : — * Mary McNeil Fenollosa. x o -I w p ta < H5 2 2 w S ~>° H ^ J a 05 p X o °Q W > LEGENDS ANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED253 " For years, long years ago on lake and river The lotus bloomed with petal curl on curl Close folded ; and to full perfection never Had opened wide those lattices of pearl. " Like fair white maids their finger tips a-meeting, Like wordless song unwed to music's art, They pierced the stream each morn in pallid greeting, Then shrank in silence, for they had no heart. HINDU IDEA OF THE UNIVERSE BASED ON FORM OF LOTUS. 'Above them nightly stars would lean and hover With gifts of whisper rays, and kisses long; But all in vain, till one transcendent lover Slid down from heaven among the startled throng. 254 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK " At morn the flowers stood still like pale nuns hushing ; But one among them throbbed her sweetness far, Like arms outspread the full-veined petals flushing, For in her trembling heart there lay a star." Zhe Wvagon in Brt Great importance has always been attached to mythical monsters and their representation in art. Through Christian teachings the powers of evil have been per- sonified in dragon form, and the stories of saints who have withstood the attacks of the adversary once so thrilled our childish imaginations that when, later in life, we find that the same legends illustrate art, it becomes difficult to dissociate Occidental adapta- tions from Oriental myths, especially as both have found their way lifll into textile de- signs, and from Asia Minor, the home of the story of St. George and the Dragon, to the eastern limits ^ of Asia,the dragon advances in im- portance until in China he reigns supreme, the drag- on of dragons. The imperial dragon of China differs from any other dragon form known in art. Whether painted on pottery, carved in wood or jade, worked in silk, cast in metal, or woven into rugs, there seems to be some THE FIVE-CLAW DRAGON OF CHINA. DESIGNS SHOWING DRAGONS IN CLOUDS WITH PEARLS, BATS, KNOTS OF DESTINY, WAVES, CLOUDS, SACRED MOUNTAIN, flDE-JEWELS, Ere. LEGENDSANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED25S underlying reason for the accuracy observed by the craftsman, and evidently some definite idea had pos- session of the thought of the designer. It is precisely this allegiance to the absolute that makes it possible to find in Mongolian ornament a revelation of thought, and to it may be traced lines and forms adopted by tributary dependencies of the great em- pire. The dragon with five claws has for 250 years marked the reign of the Tartars, and is the imperial dragon at the present time. The Emperor is spoken of as having the "great dragon face," as wearing the " great dragon robe," and as sitting on the " great dragon throne," his rod the " dragon's sceptre," his voice, " the dragon's voice." Flame motifs dart from the drag- on's body, and fall about through the water and air. Wave and cloud motifs ac- company him, and help us to discrimi- nate between water ARCHAIC DRAGON FORM ON STANDARD. dragons and dragons of the sky, and it is important to note all of these points in the study of mythological designs in rugs. " This fabulous dragon of China is a monster with scales like a crocodile. He has no wings, and when he rises in the air it is by a power he is supposed to possess of transforming himself at pleasure. He can make himself little or large, and rise and fall just as he chooses. He sends rain, and is the ruler of the clouds, and of the scaly reptiles the dragon is the chief. In the spring it 256 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK ascends to the skies, and in the autumn it buries itself in the watery depth. There is the celestial dragon, which guards the mansions of the gods, and supports them, so that they do not fall; the divine dragon, which causes the winds to blow ; the earth dragon, which marks out the courses of rivers and streams ; and the dragon of the hidden treasures, which watches over the wealth concealed from mortals." * In Japan many of the attributes of the dragon are popularly described in the folk-lore of the people, and those who find difficulty in distinguishing be- tween things Chinese and Japanese should particularly endeavour to avoid deciding too quickly which are which. The story of the " drag- on king under the' sea," and of " the jewels of the ebbing and flowing tide " granted as gift to Prince Fire-fade, with the ac- count of " Benten and her dragon chariot," are Japanese fairy-tales, though somewhat based on Chinese myths. So involved does the study of the legendary monster become that life seems hardly long enough to deter- THREE-CLAW DRAGON OF JAPAN. * Native author. •* *J <-—>» > -* PORTIONS OF CHINESE MANDARIN ROBES SHOWING I III SACRED MOUNTAIN RISING FROM THE WAVES; DRAGONS (HARDING JEWELS; AND WAVE AND CLOUD DESIGNS LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 257 mine the exact story belonging to each of the dragons depicted in Mongolian art. Consider, however, the interest attached to speculation, when we know that not any kind of a dragon is used without thought by dragon-scrolls . ~ . . . . FROM BORDER DE- the Oriental artist, but a special signs, showing sug- dragon for a special reason, — the GESTION OF LEGS - dragon of the clouds, the dragon of the winds, the dragon of the sea, — the great force behind everything, — the dragon force ! The archaic Chinese dragon had the form of a huge lizard : as such we find him in undeveloped ornament, a simple scrollwork in old fret borders. The addition of more clearly defined motifs by modern artists has confirmed the specula- tive student in his impres- C^ Xy^J sions that what is called butterfly- archaic border the "dragon scroll pattern" scroll DESIGNS. . BORDER-MOTIF. is really founded upon the archaic dragon form. This Chinese dragon scroll pattern differs from the earliest form of the butterfly and bat ornaments in that the ends turn in different directions. Dragons are customarily represented as either hold- ing or looking toward a round object, called by some authorities a ball, by others the sun, by still others a pearl. The attitude of the dragon toward this object, for which it seems to reach, is most significant, for while " all dragons may enjoy the chu, or ball, only those who have overcome obstacles and hindrances, 258 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK and have mounted to the heavens, can posses a chin or pearl." * The shape of the pearl is easily recognized : it has a slightly pointed top, about which two or three concentric rinsrs are described. Knowledge is at best but fragmen- tary about all these matters, and the time has not yet arrived for us to speak fearlessly all that some believe "chin "or pearl to be signified by the easier search of FOR WHICH DRAGON ,, , - , . . , . . seeks. the dragon for an object in which it so manifestly delights. The few facts to be gleaned lack any substantial evidence that they may be considered as relating to each other and dependent one upon the other. It seems, however, highly probable that the early orna- ment means more than is at first supposed. Even those slow to connect the early beliefs of one nation with those of another will see in the chase of the dragon for that which seems to be constantly within his reach, but not in his grasp, the ceaseless desire of the heart to possess something of priceless worth. The most conservative thinkers agree that the chin, or pearl stands for purity, and that the dragon is sup- posed to reverence and guard something greater than himself — purity and integrity — from the grasp of demons. The greatest of Chinese emperors, who has been honoured by loyal followers everywhere, in both the * Native authority. EMPEROR OF CHINA DRAGON AND FUNG-KWANG, AS SEEN IN' OLD CHINESE DESIGNS, APPEAR AT I Ilk TOP AM) BOTTOM OF FRAME LEGENDSAND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 259 past and the present is represented as having the dragon form and holding the pearl, as though in and through him righteousness and purity had been demonstrated. A vast amount of tradition connects the dragon with the great forces of nature that are revered and feared by the Chinese. The Feng-shui is perhaps the most universal of these superstitions. The great dragon and the powerful white tiger represent the wind and water forces. Nothing is done without reference to these controlling agents, and they are manifested in art with elaborate diagrams by which one can determine how to block the course of evil influences, and open the way for all good things. The chin, or pearl, is identically the same in form, and doubtless in meaning, as the HosJiino-tama of the Japanese. This same jewel figures in various ways in Japanese art, — as the " tide-jewel," and as a charm held by various deities and saints. Many writers have referred to and explained this form, but as yet the facts regarding it have never been strung together so that the student may feel sure that he has authority for his belief. An independent theory which has long seemed most significant connects the form with that of the dried seed of the lotus, and with the germinat- ing power of that most time-honoured plant. If it were possible to photograph illustrative objects, — por- celains, wood-carvings, embroideries, silks, and weav- ings of various sorts decorated with the chin, the reasons for arriving at this conclusion would be evident. One of the Pa-hsien or eight Immortals of China, who holds the lotus blossom as her emblem, is often 260 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK represented as lifting the flower form as a votive offer- ing at a shrine, and from the flower seems to arise the seed, which is in the exact form of the chin, or pearl. In images of Buddha, seen everywhere in temples and depicted as ornament for household shrines, is the "jewel," either held in the hand of him who sits upon the lotus throne, or emanating from the sacred person as attribute. In some cases the heads of Buddhist saints take the form, the hair framing it as the flame that is commonly seen all about the jewel. The dragon of Japan has but three claws, and, as it has been adopted in both form and meaning from the Chinese, it is not always as true to tradition as his Majesty, Lung, the dragon of China, and he some- times appears without the jewel, and 'very often with-out the ball. In the fanciful way in which the Japanese treat even the most serious thoughts of the older art, they have developed the dragon in ornament so that in minutest detail " Tats " * has become sicmifi- cant. Their great dragon is supposed to have nine dragon children, who have strong antipathies and fancies. One dragon lovessounds, and is used to dec- orate bells and musical instruments. Another loves JAPANESE IMPERIAL CREST. * The Japanese name for dragon. LEGENDSANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED261 dangerous places and is carved upon roofs, angles, and corners. The dragon who loves to bear weight is used to decorate tables, and is placed in all positions where heavy weight may rest upon him. And so on through the entire dragon family. It was to the palace of the great dragon King under the sea, that the fisher-boy " Urashima" was taken on the wonderful fringed-tail turtle, and as emblem of longevity in far-away Nippon the fabulous tortoise ends the travels which originated in the Hindu legends of birth. Without end the mythology of the East has materi- ally influenced European art, and in no form of orna- ment can it be traced more absolutely than in that of the pearl, which as the "ball and claw " design, ter- minated the legs of tables and chairs when admiration of things Oriental was in vogue in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. In the rucrs of Samarkand and eastern Turkestan we find dragon forms that adhere to Chinese traditions, but there is a perceptible change in the drawing of the monster whenever he appears in Indian or Persian fabrics. In old Ispahan rugs, in which Mongolian features are sometimes combined with strictly Persian ornament, we find the dragon a beast-like creature with elongated body and cumbersome legs, walking about with other animals, which he is subduing or with whom he is fighting. As one who frequently attacks and destroys the birds who are feeding upon the "tree of life," he is pictured in Indian ornamenta- tion of rugs that show both Persian and Chinese influ- ence, though made in India and by Mohammedans, showing how lax the devotees of any religion may 262 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK become when broken up into sects, who handle orig- inal tenets with individual liberty. Not alone the. entire body of the dragon appears in rug designs, but the claw, — the scale, — the flame, and the cloud, furnish motifs that are distinctive and significant. From the earliest times beads have been used by the devotees of the various religions iROSarS throughout the WO rld, Buddhists, Moham- medans, and Christians alike. With the impulse born of the human craving for some tangible, outward and visible sign of his inward and spiritual nature, man has attached to the rosary deep significance as a sym- bol of prayer and devotion, and through the ages has counted his beads reverently in his effort to reach up through the medium of the known to the unknown. With the ability born of human capacity for suffering, the Pagan and the Christian alike attach significance to that which can be handled to-day in memory of that which was yesterday. Whether to chronicle an event, to register a vow, or to remind one of the great phenomena of nature, beads have well served the end to which they have been dedicated. With the idea of gathering together the allusions made by various authorities to the use of the rosary throughout religious history, the following compila- tion was recently made and privately published and is here inserted by permission of the compiler.* * " A Few Notes on the Rosary " compiled by Miss Stow, San Francisco, Cal., for private circulation; the privilege to use the various excerpts having been obtained from authors and publish- ers whose names are given. The illustrations are from Miss Stow's collection of Rosaries. A. COLLECTION OF ROSARIES: ROMAN CATHOLIC, BUDDHIST AND MOHAMMEDAN. B. ROMAN CATHOLIC ROSARIES LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 263 " Rosaries are used by Buddhists, Christians, Mohammedans, and Hindus. The Mohammedans, as each bead passes through their hand, recite one of the one hundred attributes of the Creator. Their rosary has one hundred beads, that of the Burmese Budd- hist, one hundred and eight. The one thousand names of Vishnu and Siva are strung together in verse, and are repeated on certain occasions by Brahmans as a ' litany accompanied sometimes with the rosary.' As each name is mentally recited, with the attention abstractedly fixed on the attribute or character of which the names excites the idea, a bead is dropped through the finger and thumb ; such operation is supposed to assist or promote abstrac- tion, an attainment which enthusiastic Hindus think exceedingly efficacious." * -I* ». " Beads were anciently used to record time, and a circle, being a line without termination, was the natural emblem of its perpetual continuity ; hence we often find circles of beads upon the heads of deities and enclosing the sacred symbols upon coins and other monuments." t •jg^aN " The belief in the efficacy of beads is at the lftmt<>« basis of the use of rosaries, which, as used in Europe, are almost certainly of Eastern origin, imported in the Middle Ages in imitation of those worn by Budd- histic or Hindu acetics, who ascribe to them manifold virtue. Such are those of the Taldst or sacred basil, worn by Vaishnavas, and those of the Rudraksha worn by Saivas." J 3-£lDaiteSC " ^ ne most casua l observer among residents in -£ Asiatic countries, where the Buddhist religion pre- dominates, must be familiar with the name and form of the rosary carried by the monks of the different sects, either in the hand or twisted round the waist. . . . However, to a student of Buddhism the matter presents a different aspect. * Edward Balfour, " Cyclopedia of India." t Richard Payne Knight, " Ancient Art and Mythology." I W. Crooke, " The Popular Religion and Folk-Lore of North- ern India," 264 THEORIENTAL RUGBOOK He, if he wishes to attain any proficiency in the subject which he has undertaken, must grapple with and solve these — however trivial — technicalities, for they are the stepping-stones from which in the future he may be able to obtain a comprehensive view of this vast dogma of Buddhism, with all its intricate network of metaphysical reasoning, round which unceasingly revolves the Wheel of Law. . , . " The rosary, or jiu-dzn, which, as its name implies, consists of a number of beads, or counters, for marking the number of pray- ers recited, seems to have been in use among the Buddhists for many centuries. Possibly its use and the number of its beads was first determined at the Council of Asoka, B.C. 250. The original number seems to have been 108, supposed to correspond to a like number of sins, — sins, or ' lusts of the flesh,' which all human beings are supposed to be heir to. " The sho-zokit-jiti-dzu, or rosary used by all the sects in com- mon (in Japan). This rosary consists of 112 beads of a uniform size, exclusive of two large ones, so placed that they divide the 112 into two equal parts, namely 56 beads between each large bead. From one of the large beads extend two pendant strings on which are strung 21 beads rather smaller than those on the main string ; these are here terminated by two beads of an elongated shape, commonly termed tsuyu-dama or dew-drop bead. These beads, which extend from the large head called ten-no-oya-dama, or upper-parent bead, are so arranged that no mistake can be made in knowing which is the upper or lower part of the rosary, and they also show which is the left and which is the right side. They are as follows : Immediately above the large one is a solitary bead beyond, at this the strings are knotted. From this, there are five beads on each string, when the string is again knotted. Still again, there are another five beads on each string, which then terminates with a dew-drop bead. The use of the solitary bead is that in holding the rosary with the upper parent-bead upper- most, it should be on the left hand ; this will ensure the right sig- nification being attached to each bead during prayer. The collective name of these pendant beads are kami-dishi, ' superior disciples.' Extending from the other large bead, chi-no-oya-dama LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 265 — lower ' parent-bead ' — are three strings, on two of which are five small beads, each being terminated by a deiv-drop string. These are termed the shimo-dishi, or ' inferior disciples.' The third has ten beads— similar to those of the disciple-beads — without a dew-drop, these are used simply as counters, termed kadzu-tori. . . . The upper large bead has several appellations, namely . . . Upper Parent-bead . . . Father . . . Buddha, etc. The lower large bead is styled . . . Lower Parent-bead . . . Mother. . . . The Divine Spirit which inspired and perfected the true enlightenment of Shivaka Muni (Buddha). The orthodox name of the dew- drop is ski tenno, the four regents who are supposed to preside over the four quarters of the universe. Placed as they are at the ends of the strings on which all the other beads are strung, they keep in harmony and order the entire rosary, as it is intended to be used. The rosary represents metaphorically the Buddhist Pan- theon ; consequently the position assigned to the dew-drop beads is supposed to be symbolic of their actual position of power and authority according to the Buddhist philosophy, presiding as they do for good or evil over the welfare of this and all other worlds. ... On the main string of beads, at an interval of seven beads either way from the Upper Parent-bead, are two beads rather smaller than the others, and generally of some different material, in order that they may be more readily distinguished. Again from these smaller beads, at a further interval of fourteen beads on either side, are two others of the same sort. . . . " The Jo-do Sect. — The rosary used by monks and laity of this sect consists of two separate strings of beads, rove one within the other. On one, exclusive of the oya-dama, are 40 beads ; and on the other, exclusive of its oya-dama 27 of the same size as the 40 on the other string, and 28 smaller beads placed alternately with the larger ones. There are thus 40 on one string and 55 on the other, making a total in both strings of 95, exclusive of the large beads. The string which has the 45 beads on it, in addition to its being rove through the other string of beads, is rove through a metal ring, sufficiently large to enable the rosary being passed freely through it when being used. Attached to this ring are two string-pendants, on one of which are ten small beads and on the 266 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK other six: these are used as counters. This style of double rosary is peculiar to the Jo-do sect. . . . This style of double rosary was first introduced and used by Awanosuke, one of the personal attendants of the founder of this sect, the intention being that it should be manipulated only with the left hand, thereby leaving the right hand free for waiting on and carrying out the orders of his superior. . . . " The Ten-Dai Sect.— The. rosary used by the monks and followers of this sect consists of a string of 112 beads of the usual size, and one large bead, oya-dama, parent-bead. At an interval of seven beads from the oya-dama on either side are placed two beads smaller than the others, and again from these at a further interval of 14 two more of the same size ; these are invariably of some different material from the main number of beads. . . . From the parent-bead, independant of the main string of beads, extend two pendant-strings of about four inches in length ; having on one, 20, and on the other, 10, small beads. These are used as counters during the recital of prayers, and when used as such, one of the 10 beads is slipped to the extreme end of the string after one round— that is, when 112 beads have been recited. After the 10 have been exhausted, one of the 20 is slipped to the extremity of its string, and the 10 replaced as at commencement of prayer. Thus by the time the whole of the 20 counters have been used once, 22,400 prayers will have been recited. This operation can be continued over and over again, according to the spiritual inclination or religious fervour of the devotee. . . . ' The Shin-Gon Sect. — The rosary as used by the monks and laity of this sect does not differ in any great degree from the one previously described. . . . " The Zen Sect. — The rosary invariably used by the monks of this sect consists of 112 beads, exclusive of one laree bead or oya-dama having no pendant beads/zw// the oya-dama. From the ten-no oya-dama, or large bead, extending about three inches in length, are the ends of the strings on which the whole of the beads are strung ; on these strings there is a small stopper- bead . . . and beyond this the strings are knotted together. On LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 267 the main string of beads, at intervals of 18 beads apart, are four small beads (of some material different from the others) two on either side of the oya-dama. They are termed the shi-ten-no — four regents. . . . " The Monto Sect. — The rosary used by the monks and laity of this sect is very similar to that used by the Ten-dai sect ; the position assigned to the four regents is the same, the only differ- ence being that it has two large beads (instead of one, as in that of the ten-dai sect), and the number of superior disciple-beads is less." * " Descriptive Notes on the Rosary as used by the Different Sects of Buddhists in Japan." ZIbC 1R0S&rV> " ^ ' s wortn y OI remark that the Buddhist's \\\ ITtlhifl rosary is almost always made of smooth mate- rials, — stones, coral, amber, or seeds, — the most common being the seeds of the Toolsee-plant (the Ocymum basili- cum), the well-known shrub into which the fair maid Toolsee was metamorphosed by Vishnu's wife, who thought that her husband admired the young woman more than she approved. That the rosary was in use among the Hindus long before the introduction of the Buddhist religion is obvious, for the most ancient images and pictures of the gods are frequently represented with chaplets of beads in their hands; but it is equally obvious that it was cor- dially welcomed by the reformers, who subsequently carried the system of artificial, or rather vicarious, prayers to an extent which, though doubtless affording considerable relief to an indifferent or exhausted worshipper, is sublimely absurd. . . . We must now pass from the Buddhists to the Hindus, and see in what light they regard the rosary. " Of the earliest days we have little information — none, indeed, except the mere fact of its being in use. It is clear that the Buddhists received it from the Brahmins, and that the Brahmins resumed it when they expelled the Buddhists. The Shastras tell us that the advantages gained by counting beads are four, viz. : (1.) Arth, riches ; (2.) Dhurm, piety; (3.) Kam, sensual enjoy- * J. M. James, (The Asiatic Society of Japan,) 268 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK ment ; (4.) Mosh, salvation. So that all the beatitudes, temporal. and external, are attainable by this simple exercise. . . . One of the most important ceremonies in which the Hindu rosary played a part was in what was called the Nama-kirt-han. The formula of this devotional exercise was somewhat monotonous, as it con- sisted in nothing but the repetition (at least in Bengal) or the names Krishna as follows : ' Huri Krishna — Huri Krishna — Krishna,' etc. . . . " The variety and size of the rosary and the number of beads among the Hindus constitute a difference between their beads and those of the Buddhists. Moore says he once saw a rosary of 100,000 beads, although the true rosary as finally accepted con- sists, like that of the Buddhists, of 108 beads only ; the piety of the Vaishnava [he continues] is generally estimated by the number of times the rosary is gone around. No real Vaishnava, under whatever circumstances, drinks water or tastes food without mak- ing one revolution of the sacred mala, the name by which the rosary is designated. It is an object of adoration, and is gener- ally enclosed in an envelope of silk, neatly and castefully made. . . " The Hindus, as I have shown, consider that all happiness here and hereafter is to be attained by the constant use of the rosary. With them, the rosary is not only used for the purpose of assisting abstractions (though this is sometimes the object), but is an exercise constantly repeated on various occasions of active em- ployment, as well as in the energetic celebration of established ceremonies, and it is worthy of remark that the Buddhist rosary, is, as I have before observed, always smooth. The most favour- ite materials of the Hindu rosary is roodrach, an extremely rough and rugged seed, unsuited to the quiet manipulation of the con- templative Buddhist. I have myself an idea that the rosary, or prayer-bead, owes it origin among the Hindus to the sacred neck- lace, or jnala, for that is the word to this day indiscriminately used both for necklace and rosary." * * William Tayler, "Journal of the Society of Arts," "The Rosary in India," 1873. ROSARIES: A. BUDDHIST, I', MOHAMMEDAN LEGENDSANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED269 1R0S3tV> Of " Moore, the Oriental scholar (no mean fhP "RrflhUlfttfl authority) says, ' The 1,000 names of Vishnu and Shiva are strung together in verse, and are repeated on certain occasions by Brahmins as a sort of litany, accompanied sometimes by the rosary.' . . . It will be found per- haps that the first conception of the necklace was a string for suspending charms and amulets in a collar, itself vested with talis- manic powers. Necklaces and collars in the form of serpents were thus worn by Greeks and Romans as charms against the evil eye. Roots and herbs were thus appropriated as anti- dotes for sickness and for their pleasant perfume and sweet scent. ... It is easily conceivable that such necklaces — almost all of which, as far as male wearers are concerned (for the female love of ornamentation is an entirely different matter, being simply the ambition of personal beauty, common alike to ancient barbarian and modern belle), are connected with some religious idea — should gradually assume the more direct religious character which apper- tains to the rosary, and thus eventually a sacred or devotional necklace or chaplet should be originated. The chief necklace- wearer among the Hindu gods was Shiva, or Muhadeo (the destroyer). His necklace was not a pleasant one, being com- posed of human skulls, which he invaribly wore, even when in company with his amiable consort, Parbutee. Indeed, his wife kept him company, and she wore at times a string of smaller skulls.* " The rosary {japa-mala) used by Saivas is a string of 32 rough berries (or that number doubled) of the rudraksha tree {Elceocar- pus ganitrus}, while that of the Vaishnavas is made of the wood of the sacred tulasi {tu/si) shrub, and generally consists of 108 beads. Such rosaries may be worn as necklaces, though their chief use is to be employed as an aid in the recitation of the names of the deity or of prayers. Occasional varieties in the material and form of the rosaries may be noticed ; for example, Saiva ascetics sometimes carry rosaries formed of the teeth of dead * William Tayler's "Journal of the Society of Arts," "The Rosary in India," 1873. 2 7 o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK bodies, or sling serpents round their necks for necklaces. On the other hand, Vaishnava rosaries are occasionally, but rarely, made of lotus seeds. . . . " Another legend accounts for the use of rudraksha berries in the rosaries of Siva by describing how he once let fall some tears of rage which became converted into these seeds. Their connec- tion with Siva-worship is probably due to their roughness and to their possessing five divisions corresponding to the god's five faces. . . . " On the other side sat a Brahman with a little wooden table before him, on which was a lota of holy water, several implements of worship, and a copy of one of the Puranas, or ancient sacred scriptures. ... I asked what he was doing. ' He is counting the beads of his rosary,' said a bystander, 'and each time he tells his beads he repeats one of the 1,008 names of the god Siva over and over again, but this operation must on no account be seen, and so the hand and rosary are concealed in the bag.' . , . " Children are admitted to the religion of Vishnu at the age of six or seven years or, by some sects, earlier. A rosary or neck- lace (kauthi) of 108 beads, usually made of tulasi wood, is passed round their necks by the priests {guru), and they are taught the use of one of the foregoing formulas, which is repeated by the guru, very much as the sacred words' In nomine Patris' etc., are repeated by the priest at the Christian rite of baptism.* . . . " Next comes the regular gayatri-japa, or repeated muttering of the gayatri prayer to the sun. . . . " The correct number of repetitions is 108 and, to ensure accur- acy of enumeration, a rosary of 108 beads, made of the tulasi wood, is generally used, the hand being carefully concealed in a red bag (called go-muklu) or under a cloth." f XlbC IROSHrP " ^ ne P°P u ' ar 'dea w ' tn regard to him (Siva) is Of SlVH tnat ne was a mencn cant who gained and main- tains his power by austerities, meditation, and * Note. — According to Dr. Rajendralala Mitra, this is merely to aid the possessor in repeating any one of Vishnu's names 800 times, the eight additional beads marking each 100 recitations. . . t Sir Monier Monier-Williams, " Brahmanism and Hinduism." LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 271 invocation. . . . The conception of a man becoming god through godlike because most perfectly human conduct has no place in Sivaism. The mendicant becomes a terrible god by becoming as inhuman as possible, and all the representations of Siva carry out this idea. He is represented as having a third eye in his forehead, with a glance from which he strikes dead those who offend him ; his rosary is composed of human skulls, in which he is said to delight, and his necklace is of the same. . . . He is said thus to be sitting on Kailas, an unseen mountain of the Himalayas, still engaged in meditation, turning his rosary and engaged in invoca- tion, thereby continually increasing his power." * TTttinSlHtiOtt " Vishnu and Brahma, still bewil- ot tfjc dered by the darkness of delusion, thus Xegeno from puran said : ' How can the Iord of s° blins - the delighter in cemeteries, the naked devotee covered with ashes, haggard in appearance, wearing twisted locks ornamented with snakes, and mounted on a bull, be the Supreme Being?' The incorporeal Prana, then assuming a form, thus said : ' That is not the real form of Shiva ; but when united to his energy he sometimes, under the figure of Rudra, delights himself in various illusive sports. But these words dis- pelled not the spiritual darkness of Vishnu and Brahma ; when suddenly appeared between them a wondrous effulgence filling the heavens and earth and mid-air, in the midst of which they be- held a human form, vast, uncreated, of a dark hue, holding in his hand a trident and a rosary and wearing a serpent for the Brah- minical string. . . . " Brahma is in no Sanskrit work described as having ever been engaged in battle, or in the slightest degree acquainted with the use of arms. In his figures, also, he is represented holding in his four hands a manuscript book containing a portion of the Vedas, a pot for holding water, a rosary, and a sacrificial spoon. . . . " Then, also, was produced from the quality of darkness * Rev. John Robson, " Hinduism and its Relations to Christi- anity." ' 272 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK another form with three eyes and twisted locks, and bearing a rosary and a trident." * "CbC IBuDfcblSt " Tne number 108 also occurs in the ' Lalita 1R088rV> Vistara,' not applied to marks on the foot- print, but to a list of the ' Evident Gates of the Law ' ; that is a summation of 108 things especially to be remembered by Buddhists. I believe it to have been a number selected somewhat fancifully by some Buddhist mathematician. I see that it is composed of unity, duality, and trinity. It con- sists of one one, two twos, and three threes, all multiplied together, thus : 1X2X2x3X3X3 = 108. " In the same way I find that 32, which is the number selected for the signs of a great man, is composed very simply of the square of two multiplied by the cube of two. These numbers seem to show that the early Buddhists were a mathematically-minded set of men, or at least studied the science of numbers." t " The duty of constant repetition of prayer formulae and mysti- cal sentences has led northern Buddhists to employ rosaries, which were used by both Hindus and Buddhists long before they came into vogue in Europe. Without these necessary aids to devotion, the long round of repetition could not be accurately completed. In northern Buddhist countries, rosaries ought to consist of 108 beads, which in Tibet are said to represent the 108 volumes of the Kanjun. The same number of beads is used by worshippers of Vishnu, who use the rosary to aid them in repeating any one of the names of Vishnu 800 times, the eight additional beads marking each century of repetition. The commonest Buddhist rosaries are made of wood, or pebbles, or berries, or bone, the more costly of turquoise, coral, amber, or silver, or even of pearls and gems. If a rosary made of bones of some holy lama can be procured, it is, of course, prized above all others. Sometimes a doji is appended. * Lieutenant-Col. Vans Kennedy, " Researches into the Nature and Affinity of Ancient and Hindu Mythology." t Henry Alabaster, " The Wheel of the Law," Part III, chapter 3. BUG-PLATE XXXVIII PORTION OF SOUMAC RUG RUG-PLATE XXXVIII PORTION OF SOUMAC RUG Author's Description CT^ HIS illustration is given for the purpose of -*■ shotting an accurately woven " knot-of- destiny" in the design. This may be seen on the right-hand side of the cut, a little below the centre. RUG-PLATE XXX VI II LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 274 Northern Buddhist worshippers hold their rosaries (like Roman Catholics) in their right hand, and move on the beads with the left ; and they will do this while talking or even quarrelling. In China and Japan, Buddhist rosaries are often arranged in two rings. They sometimes consist of enormous beads with relics in the central bead." * TThf* (thftt^fl^ " ^ ' on & cna ' n °f IQ 8 balls or beads. It is f/ITSmihflrhi'i called the chu-chu, and it is intended to re- V. ' mind the wearer of the land of which he is a TROSar^ native. Of the 108 beads of which the chain consists, 72 are supposed to represent so many precious stones, minerals, and metals native to China ; and the remaining 36 repre- sent as many constellations or planets which shed their benign rays on the country. To the left side of this chain are attached two very short strings of smaller beads, supposed to impress upon the mind of the wearer the reverence he owes to his ancestors and the filial piety at all times due to his parents and guardians ; to the right side of the chain is attached a short string of smaller beads to remind the wearer of the allegiance which he owes, to the imperial throne of his country." t CbtnCSC " "^ ne Buddhist priests generally wear, while IBllhfthlAm engaged in their temples in the repeating of their peculiar formularies, a string of 108 beads, slung over their necks. When they have repeated or conned over a section or chapter once, they move along one of the beads on the string, and then, having repeated another section or chapter, move along another bead. They are thus enabled to keep an accurate account of the number of their ' vain ' repetitions." % " The Rosary is a notable feature in the private devotions of the Buddhists, but the Jo-do sect makes especial use of the double rosary, which was invented with the idea of being manipulated by * Sir Monier Monier-Williams, " Buddhism and its Connection with Brahmanism and Hinduism. \ General Tcheng-ki-Tong, " The Chinese Empire." \ Rev. Justus Doolittle, " Social Life of the Chinese." 274 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK the left hand only ; this gave freedom to the right hand, ' facilita- ting a happy combination of spiritual and secular duty '." * ZTbe UibCtatt " As a Buddhist article the rosary appears .jp only in the latest ritualistic stage, when a belief ' " had arisen in the potency of muttering mystic spells and other strange formulas. In the very complicated rosaries of Japan it has attained its highest development. Amongst southern Buddhists the rosary is not very conspicuous, but among Tibetans it is everywhere visible. It is also held in the hand of the image of the patron god of Tibet,— Cha-ra-si. And its use is not confined to the lamas (priests). Nearly every lay man and woman is possessed of a rosary, on which at every opportunity they zealously store up merit ; and they also use it for secular pur- poses, like the sliding balls of the Chinese, to assist in ordinary calculations : the beads to the right of the centre bead being called ta-than and registering units, while those to the left are called cudo and record tens, which numbers suffice for their ordi- nary wants. . . . " The rosary contains 108 beads of uniform size. The reason for this special number is alleged to be merely a provision to ensure the repetition of the sacred spell a full hundred times, and the extra beads are added to make up for any omission of beads, through absent-mindedness during the telling process or for actual loss of beads by breakage. Che'-re'-si and Do-ma have each 108 names, but it is not usual to tell those on the rosary. . . . " The Burmese foot-prints of Buddha sometimes contain 108 subdivisions. This number is perhaps borrowed, like so many other lamaist fashions, from the Hindus, of whom the Vaishnabs possess a rosary with 108 beads. The two ends of the string of beads, before being knotted, are passed through three extra beads, the centre one of which is the largest. These are collectively called 'retaining or seizing beads.' . . . These beads keep the proper rosary beads in position, and indicate to the teller the com- pletion of a cycle of beads. This triad of beads symbolizes ' The Three Holy Ones ' of the Buddhist Trinity, viz.: Buddha, Dharma * Griffis, " The Religions of Japan. LEGENDSANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED 275 (the Word), and Sangha (the Church excluding the laity). The large central bead represents Buddha, while the smaller one inter- vening between it and the rosary beads proper represents the Church and is called ' Our radical lama ' (or spiritual adviser), the personal lama-guide and confessor of the Tibetan Buddhist ; and his symbolic presence on the rosary immediately at the end of the bead-cycle is to ensure becoming gravity and care in the act of tel- ling the beads, as if he was actually present. " The Gelug-pa, or established church, usually has only two beads as dok-dsin, in which case the terminal one is of much smaller size, and the pair are considered emblematic of a vase from which the beads spring. . . . Counters: Attached to the rosary is a pair of strings of ten small pendant metallic rings as counters. . . . The counters and ornaments of the strings are usually of silver and inlaid with turquoise. . . . The material of which the lamaist rosaries are composed may to a certain extent vary in costliness, according to the wealth of the wearer. . . . Turner relates that the Grand Tashi Lama possessed rosaries of pearls, emeralds, rubies, sapphires, coral, amber, crystal, and Iapis-lazuli. But the material of the rosary can only vary within rather narrow limits, its nature being determined by the particular sect to which the lama belongs and the particular deity to whom worship is to be paid. , . . " The complexion of the god or goddess to be worshipped also determines sometimes the colour of the rosary beads. Thus a tur- quoise rosary is occasionally used in the worship of the popular goddess Tara, who is of a bluish-green complexion. A red rosary with red Tarn-din, a yellow with yellow Manjusri, and Vaisravan, who is of a golden-yellow colour, is worshipped with an amber rosary. The rosaries of the laity are composed of any sort of beads according to the taste and wealth of the owner. They are mostly glass beads of various colours, and the same rosary con- tains beads of a variety of sizes and colours, interspersed with coral, amber, turquoise, etc. The number of beads is the same as with the lamas, but each of the counter strings is usually terminated by a vajra ; both strings record only units. of cycles, which suffice for the smaller amount of bead-telling done by the laity. When not 276 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK in use the rosary is wound around the right wrist like a bracelet, or worn around the neck, with the knotted end uppermost. " The act of telling the beads is called tart'-c'e, which literally means 'to purr' like a cat, and the muttering of the prayers is rather suggestive of this sound. In telling the beads, the right hand is passed through the rosary, which is allowed to hang freely down, with the knotted end upward. The hand, with the thumb upward, is then usually carried to the breast and held there sta- tionery during the recital. On pronouncing the initial word 'Om,' the first bead resting on the knuckle is grasped by raising the thumb and quickly depressing its tip to seize the bead against the outer part of the second joint of the index finger. During the rest of the sentence the bead, still grasped between the thumb and index finger, is gently revolved to the right, and on conclusion of the sentence is dropped down the palm-side of the string. Then with another ' Om ' the next bead is seized and treated in like man- ner, and so on throughout the circle. On concluding each cycle of the beads, it is usual to finger each of the three ' keeper-beads', saying, respectively, 'Om !' 'Ah!' 'Hum.' The mystic formulas for the beads have already been illustrated. They follow the prayer, properly so called, and are believed to contain the essence of the formal prayer and to act as powerful spells. They are of a Sanskritic nature, usually containing the name of the deity addressed, and even when not gibberish, as they generally are, they are more or less unintelligible to the worshippers."* " Rosaries . . . are considered by all Tibetans as not only in- dispensable in their daily devotions, but as ornaments, and are also used by many as a means of reckoning sums. They are worn by both men and women around the neck or on the wrist, and have invariably 108 beads. Some are made of ivory, others of seeds, of wood, of bone, of coral, turquoises, crystal, or glass. . . . This rosary contains 108 discoidal shell beads, of uniform size, divided into four groups of 27 beads each by three red coral beads ; where two ends of the strings of beads come together, they are passed through a large amber bead, a smaller discoidal, and a conical one, * L. A. Waddell, " The Buddhism of Thibet. HUG-PLATE XXXIX KIRMAN RUG MUG-PLATE XXXIX KIRMAN RUG RUG-PLATE XXXIX LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 277 so that the two look like a fat, long necked vase. These last two beads are called do-dzm (rdog-hdzin), ' retaining or seizing beads.' Four short leather thongs strung on the rosary beside the do-dzin by silver rings have silver beads on each of them, and at the lower end of one there is a little silver dorje. These strings are used as counters (lirang-dzin) in the following fashion : When a certain charm has been recited 108 times, the first bead on the string, to which is attached the dorje is slid up the string, and so on for each series of 108 repetitions till the tenth time ; then the first bead on the string next to the dorje string is slid up, and so on for the four strings of counters. Usually the string next to the one on which is hung the dorje has a bell (drilbu) attached to it ; the third has the magic peg {pitrbu) on it, and the fourth a wheel (k'or-lo). /lb0b<\1UinCt){\H " T ^ e K° ran en J oms prayers five times a 1T? 1 day, and good Muslims are very particular in ^ going through prescribed forms morning, noon, and evening. It cannot, therefore, be a matter of wonder that the use of rosaries [called tasbih (praise) and furnished with tassels, called shamsa] is common among Indian Mohammedans. In all probability they were common among Hindus and Budd- hists long before the Christian era. Indeed, the Indian name for a rosary well expresses its meaning and use in Roman Catholic countries. ... It has been calculated that about 90 names and attributes are applied to Christ in the Bible. But no Romanist, however ignorant or superstitious, so far as I know, attaches any merit or efficacy to the repetition of the names of God. Moham- medans reckon 99 sacred names, or rather attributes, of the Deity. Some consider that the principal name Allah must be counted separately. The tale is thus brought up to 100. The worshippers of Vishnu adore him by 1,000 sacred names, and the votaries of Shiva by 1,008 names. ... It is not unreasonable to conjecture that the original invention of rosaries is due to India. They were as much the offspring of necessity as was the inven- tion of the sutras, or brief memorial rules for the correct perform- ance of the complicated ritual. No other country in the world stands in such need of aids to religious exercises. Vaishnavas. 278 THEORIENTALRUGBOOK Saivas, Buddhists, Jains, and Mohammedans depend upon these contrivances for securing the accurate discharge of their daily round of interminable repetitions. The rosary of the Vaishnava is made of the wood of the tulasi (vulgarly tulsi), or holy basil, a shrub sacred to Vishnu, and regarded as a metamorphosis of Ramas, pattern wife of Slta. This rosary should consist of 108 smooth beads. That worn by Saivas consists of 32, or sometimes 64, berries of the rudraksha tree (Eloeocarftus). These beads are as rough as the tulsi beads are smooth, and are generally marked with five lines, the roughness symbolizing, I suspect, the austerities connected with the worship of Saiva, and the five lines standing for the five faces, or five distinct aspects, of the god. The Mus- sulman tasbih (rosary) contains 100 beads, which are generally made of date-stones, or of the sacred earth of Karbala. They are used in repeating the 100 names of God, or certain words of the Kuran, every decade of beads being separated by a tassel. Some Sunnis are prohibited from employing rosaries, and count by means of the joints of their fingers. . . . High-caste Brahmans, on the other hand, merely use their rosaries to assist them in counting up their daily prayers." * " Allah ! His holy will be done ! Islam ! we bow before His throne. " It is a custom of pious Muslims to employ in their devotions a three-stringed chaplet, each string containing 33 beads, and each bead representing one of the ' 99 beautiful names of Allah '. . . . The Koran bids them ' celebrate Allah with an abundant celebra- tion,' and on certain occasions . . . the Faithful pass these 99 beads of the rosary through their fingers, repeating with each name of God an ejaculation of praise and worship. Such an exercise is called zzkr, or ' remembrance,' and the rosary, masba- hah, f * Sir Monier Monier-Williams, " Modern India and the Indians." t Sir Edwin Arnold, " Pearls of the Faith." LEGENDSANDMYTHSILLUSTRATED279 The Ninety-nine Names of Allah. The Merciful The Compassionate The King of Kings The Holy One The Peace The Faithful The Help in Peril The Mighty The All-Compelling The Majestic The Creator The Artificer The Fashioner The Forgiver The Dominant The Bestower The Provider The Opener The All-Knower The Closer The Uncloser The A baser The Exalter The Honourer The Leader Astray The All-Hearing The All-Seeing The Judge of All The Equitable (Sura ' Of Jonas') The Gracious One He Who is Aware The Clement The Strong The Pardoner The Thankful The Exalted The Very Great The Preserver The Maintainer The Reckoner The Beneficent The Bountiful The Watchful The Hearer of Prayer The All-Comprehending The Judge of Judges The Loving The All-Glorious The Raiser from Death The Witness The Truth The Guardian The Almighty The Firm The Nearest Friend The All-Praiseworthy The Accountant The Beginner The Restorer The Quickener The Slayer The Ever-Living The Self-Subsisting The All-Perceiving The One The Eternal Providence The All-Powerful The Forewarner The Fulfiller The First The Last The Manifest The Hidden The All-Governing „ The One Above Reproach The Good The Relenting The Avenger The Rewarder The Ever-Indulgent King of the Kingdom Lord of Splendid Power The Equitable (Last Ser- mon of the Prophet) The Gatherer The All-Sufficing The Sufficer The Provider The Withholder The Propitious The Harmful The Light The Guide Eternal in the Past Eternal in the Future The Inheritor The Unerring The Patient " The Ceremony of the Rosary is a ceremony practised among Mohammedans on special occasions, called in the Arabic, Sobhat, and usually performed on the night succeeding a burial. The soul is then supposed to remain in the body, after which it departs to Hades, there to await its final doom. The ceremony is thus described : " At night, Ji&ts, sometimes as many as 50 assemble, and one brings a rosary of 1,000 beads, each as large as a pigeon's egg w 28o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK They begin with the 67th chapter of the Koran, then say three times, ' God is one,' then recite the last chapter but one and the first, and then say three times, ' Oh God, favour the most excellent and most happy of thy creatures, our Lord Mohammed, and his family and companions and preserve them.' To this they add, ' All who commemorate Thee are the mindful and those who omit commemorating Thee are the negligent.' They next repeat 3,000 times ' There is no God but God,' one holding the rosary and counting each repetition. After each 1,000 , they sometimes rest and take coffee, then 100 times, ' (I extol) the perfection of God with His praise.' Then the same number of times, ' I beg forgiveness of God, the great,' after which 50 times, ' The perfec- tion of the Lord, the Eternal,' then ' The perfection of the Lord, the Lord of Might,' etc. Two or three then recite three or four more verses. This done, one asks his companions, ' Have ye transferred (the merit of) what ye have recited to the soul of the deceased? ' They reply, ' We have,' and add, ' Peace be on the apostle.' This concludes the ceremony, which in the houses of the rich is repeated the second and third night." * " The full Mohammedan rosary, called by them Tusbeek, con- sists of 99 beads, with one chief bead which they call the Iman, the whole number corresponding with the 100 names of God. It is divided into three equal parts, each consisting of 33 beads. The divisions are marked sometimes with a stone or bead of different shape, sometimes by one or more tassels, called shiimsehs, which, made of gold thread and silk of divers colours, have a brilliant and pleasing effect. . . . Among the Hindus and Buddhists we see the rosary confined to a few simple substances, chiefly seeds, grains, coral, and other natural products, and seldom, at least among the ordinary worshippers, assuming an ornamental appear- ance. Among the Mohammedans the case is different: all the rosaries they use are made of elegant and ornamental materials, .... agate, cornelian, onyx, even emeralds, f * McClintock and Strong, " Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature." f William Tayler, Journal of Society of Arts " The Rosary in India," HUG-PLATE XL TURKISH RUG MUG-PLATE XL TURKISH RUG Oriental Expert's Description ' L / HIS interesting rug was woven on the pri- vate looms belonging to the Sultan in Constantinople. " S. S. Costikyan. R.UG-PLA1 E XL LEGENDS AND MYTHS ILLUSTRATED 281 XTbC IROtHHH " The rosary is one of the most beautiful, ClthOliC TROSarV) most pfofitable, and most popular of all devotions. It was revealed to St. Dominic by the divine Mother herself, about the beginning of the thirteenth century. . . . The rosary, when practised in the most perfect man- ner, consists of two distinct modes of prayer joined together in one exercise. It is a combination of mental prayer, or meditation, with vocal prayer. " The meditation is made by the consideration of the most memo- rable and touching ' mysteries ' or events in the life, passion, and victory of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. The vocal prayer consists of the recitation on the beads of the Lord's Prayer, the Hail Mary, and the Gloria Patri, or Doxology. The mysteries to be meditated are 1 5 in number and divided into three parts, which are named the five joyful, the five sorrowful, and the five glorious mysteries " The rosary beads on which the vocal prayers are recited are also divided in a corresponding manner into three parts, and each part into five decades (or tens), each decade consisting of one bead for the Pater and ten for the Aves. The Gloria at the end of every decade is recited on the same bead as the Pater, which begins the decade that follows. "The chaplet, or, as it is sometimes called, ' the rosary of five decades,' constitutes only a third part of the full rosary, and is the common form in which the beads are made and used at the present day, it not being usual to recite more than one part at a time. " The indulgences attached to the recitation of the rosary are of two kinds, viz., the ordinary indulgences and those (so-called) of St. Bridget. Among these indulgences the principal are the fol- lowing : (1) Those who are accustomed to recite weekly the chap- let, or rosary, of five decades, blessed in the ordinary manner, gain an indulgence of 100 days each time. (2) If the rosary has been blessed by a priest authorised to give the Bridgetine indulgences on gains for every time he recites the five decades and indulgence of 100 days for each bead. The rosaries blessed during the mission receive those as well as the ordinary indulgences. " N. B.— Those who are not capable of meditating the mysteries 282 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK may gain the above indulgence by simply saying their beads with piety. . . . " Method of Saying the Rosary with the Mysteries. — Taking your beads in your right hand by the medal, or cross, bless your- self and say, ' In the name of the Father,' etc. Then recite, by way of introduction, the creed, one Pater, three Aves, and one Gloria, after which you go on with the meditation of the mysteries and the recitation of the decades." * " i. A Chaplet of Beads. — 2. A Devotion. — This devotion is said to have been instituted by St. Dominic, after having had a special revelation from the Blessed Virgin, in the year 1206. It consists of 15 Pater Nosters and .Glorias, and 150 Ave Marias divided into three parts. Each part contains five decades ; a decade consists of one Pater Noster, ten Ave Marias, and one Gloria Patri. To each of these decades is assigned for meditation one of the principal events in the life of our Lord, or of His Blessed Mother, five joyful, five sorrowful, and five glorious mys- teries." t " The rosary was first used by the Dominican Monks, though it is not certain that it was introduced by St. Dominic himself. As it is used by both the Mohammedans and the Brahmins, it is generally believed to have been brought to Europe by the Cru- saders."! * St. Alphonsus Liguori, "The Holy Rosary." t Rev. F. G. Lee, " Glossary of Liturgical and Ecclesiastical Terms." \ Philip Schaff, " Encyclopedia and Dictionary. Religions." CHAPTER XXIII CALLIGRAPHY USED IN ORNAMENTATION OF RUGS " Words set to music have a wondrous power when aided by inspiration and the magic of fine writing." SINCE the Saracenic conquest Arabic characters have been used by the scholars and scribes of Persia, and such have figured largely in the decoration of pottery and weaving. It would indeed take the learning of a sage to grasp even a faint idea of the various ways that the alpha- bets of the world have figu- red i n design. Ideographs, hieroglyphs and signs innumer- able defy the most careful study, so modi- fied and change are even the most readily understood forms, by accents, positions, and abbreviations. There TIHETAN PRAYER. 284 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK are signs of tone and signs of punctuation ; there are vowel strokes and classification of consonants ; there are signs to represent inarticulate sounds, and laws of succession. In fact there is enough in the mere study of alphabets to occupy an ordinary lifetime, for in them all sorts of traceries and interlaced knots and ornaments have found their origin. Rude scratches accompanying the patterns used by primitive and illiterate peoples have proved to be explanatory phrases, which, though untranslatable, add greatly to the value of fabrics which they decorate. Calligraphy, however, is a fine art ; and as applied to the weaver's craft it accomplishes a double purpose : it serves as ornamentation, and at the same time suggests the intellectual and artistic qualities which have always distinguished the people of Persia. Calligraphy, " the golden profession," has always been patronized by royalty, and many and various accounts are treasured of the appreciation bestowed on him who could practise his art most successfully. The writer of the " Life of Shah Jehan " had his mouth stuffed full of pearls as a reward, besides his regular fee. Ever and always the scribe of the Orient has been and is honoured. His ink-box, horn, or case, of whatever shape it is, always bears the marks of the highest decorative art of the period. From the Mediterranean to the China Sea, with pens of metal and with brushes of finest hair, the art of writing- holds sway over the appreciative Oriental. Rever- ence for the written character is taught in the far East, where even printed matter is burned and not thrown about carelessly. RUG-PLATE XLI HEREZ RUG M UG-FLA TE XLI HEREZ BUG Authenticated by S. S. Costikyan Author's Description T N this rug is shotcn the shaded background -*■ which is so strony a feature in the old Herez rugs, and which appears often in modern Gorevan rugs and other iveavings of the district. RUG-PLATE XLI CALLIGRAPHY IN ORNAMENTATION 2S5 What wonder, then, that the choicest fabrics of the loom should receive, as the most finished decoration, that which was so highly honoured and practised as a fine art ? To the untrained eye of the Occidental student the characters traced in rugs are not always apparent. Sometimes over the entire background the word " Allah " is traced in green wools between the patterns, green being the sacred colour of the Mo- hammedans. Words expressing the humility of the -^ INSCRIPTIONS, NAME AND DATE WOVEN IN RUG. weaver are often found woven most dextrously into rugs, revealing the habit so customary among Orien- tals, of speaking disparagingly of their own ability and possessions, trusting themselves to the considera- tion of the listener, who is supposed to show his appreciation in inverse ratio to that which the maker and owner professes. Dates and names are sometimes found written y r r ° i v a ■ 1 ♦ ARABIC NUMERALS FOUND IN RUGS. plainly or obscurely in the upper ends of rugs. In order to decipher such writing one should carefully 2S6 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK count the stitches or knots it has required to make them, and should depend upon this accurate analysis to determine the cursive forms of the letters. Only in this way can a safe estimate be made of what the characters really are. When correctly copied, any Oriental scholar sufficiently versed in the language will be able to translate them. Unless each little point be carefully observed, however, the meaning will not be apparent, as each one has special signifi- cance and bears upon the whole. The Arabic num- erals are not altogether unlike those to which we are accustomed, and in an old legend they are traced back to the famous signet of Solomon. SIGNET OF SOLOMON, MYTHICAL ORIGIN OF NUMBERS. In very old embroideries these rectilinear figures are occasionally found forming borders, but no corrob- orative authority can be found for the legendary statement. It is a most interesting matter to investi- gate, and it is to be hoped' that some one able to do so will bring forward satisfactory testimony which shall establish as fact that which now must be classed as speculation. Silk rugs bearing inscriptions in cartouches arranged as border designs around elaborately decorated field patterns have been made as dowry rugs for princesses, and are treasured as choice possessions by their present owners. Such are sometimes most elaborately worked in silk upon backgrounds of gold and silver, which as CALLIGRAPHY IN ORNAMENTATION 287 woof upon a fine warp make a smooth metallic surface for ornamentation in relief. Sentences from the Koran or quotations from the poems of famous writers are used in calligraphic dec- orations. Occasionally some adulatory opinion finds expression, in an inconspicuous place, upon a rug ornamented in the main with writing held in cartouche forms. Attempts have been made in modern rugs to copy in a crude and deceptive way the beautiful rugs of past centuries. Rudely drawn cursive characters easily deceive those who know nothing of Arabic writing, and such rugs are very beautiful in them- selves, and are well made and attractive in every way. They should not, however, be sold or bought as antiques, or as rugs made for distinguished individuals in the Orient. In strong contrast to many that arouse question are the few that stand as veritable and authenticated treasures in many Occidental homes to-day. Such, for example, is a most wonderfully woven and beautiful silk rug in which upon a background of silver the following sentences are held within car- touches: The Dowry-Rug for our Princess Marazade, by the Master-Weaver Abdallah Ebn Salam. (Date Hajiro 1221, or 1781 a. d.) " I direct my face unto Him who hath created the heavens and -the earth." 28S THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK " Verily the true religion in the light of God is Islam : God hath borne witness that there is no God but He." " He is a God in heaven and in earth : He knoweth what ye keep secret and what ye publish, and knoweth what ye deserve." " Who maketh the Angels His messengers, furnished with two and three and four pairs of wings." " Fear that which is before you and that which is behind you." " His commandment, when He willeth a thing, is only that He saith unto it, Be : and it is." " Give alms of that which God hath bestowed on you." " A blessed book have we sent down unto thee, O Mohammed." " Attentively meditate on the signs thereof, that men of under- standing may be warned." " Praise be unto Him in whose hand is the Kingdom of all things." " He causeth the night to succeed the day, and He causeth the day to succeed the night, and He obligeth the sun and the moon to perform their services, each of them hasteneth to an appointed period." " This is what ye are promised at the day of account. This is our provision which shall not fail." " And thou shalt see the angels going in procession around the throne, celebrating the praises of their Lord." " And the earth shall shine by the light of its Lord, and the book shall be laid open, and the prophets and the martyrs shall be brought as witnesses." " It is God who hath appointed the night for you to take your rest therein, and the day to give you light." " The last hour will surely come : there is no doubt thereof but the greater part of men believe it not." " Woe be to the idolaters who give not the appointed alms and believe not in the life to come." " God maketh what addition he pleaseth unto his creatures, for God is almighty." Ii UG-FLA TE XLII HAM AD AN RUG BUG-PLATE XLII HAM AD AN RUG Authenticated by S. S. Costikyan RUG-PLATE XLH CALLIGRAPHY IN ORNAMENTATION 2S9 " He placed in the earth mountains firmly rooted, rising above the sea, and he blessed it, and provided therein the food of the creatures." " Say unto those who believe not, Ye shall be overcome, and thrown together into hell : and an unhappy couch shall it be." " And if a malicious suggestion be offered unto thee from Satan, have recourse unto God, for it is He who heareth and knovveth." " On the day of resurrection thou shalt see the faces of those who have uttered lies concerning God, become black." " When the one sole God is mentioned, the hearts of those who believe not in the life to come shrink with horror." " God taketh unto Himself the souls of men at the time of their death, and those which die not He also taketh in their sleep." " Who is more unjust than he who uttereth a lie concerning God, and denieth the truth when it cometh unto him ? " "Verily, I fear, if I be disobedient unto my Lord, the punish- ment of the great day." " It is He who hath created you of clay and then decreed the term of your lives: and the prefixed term is with him." Another notable carpet has been thus described. "This rug was made in the year Arabi (Mohammedan era) 1244, for Fetali Shah, who bequested it to his grandson, Mehemmed Shah. It passed from him to Nasreddin Shah, the present ruler, who gave it to the Crown Prince, Mouzataffareddin Bey, from whom it was secured through the court chamberlain. The maker of the piece was Rejeb, the most renowned artist of his time, who, it is said, with five assistants, devoted more than three years to the execution of this work of art. He has signed his name on the rug, as can be seen on the upper right-hand corner. The writer of the poetry was the Laureate of his time, and has been considered until this day as the nation's poet. As the pro- noun representing the third person in the singular has not 2 9 o THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK separate words in the Persian for the feminine or masculine, but one word for both, and that very seldom used (as the verb changes its form according to its person), it is difficult to say- positively whether these words were meant to have been uttered by the Shah to his Queen, or vice versa. There is an opinion, however, that they were uttered by the Queen to her Consort." POEM UPON BORDERS He, my beautiful love, I am with him, And the fair world is flooded with light, In the warmth of my love the earth sparkles, And bright as the sun is the night. All Paradise-born are the breezes, — ah, yes ! The zephyrs blow fair from the south ! But sweeter than heaven-grown Laddehn * Is the delicate, perfumed breath of his mouth. Thou light of my life, all my heart's adoration I freely bestow upon thee ! As the eyes in my head, or my soul that is Allah's, So art thou precious to me ! I am thy servant and vassal most faithful, A slave to thy slightest behest ; From the day that I first saw thy face, Has my great love tormented my breast. When thou art away, all the grim, grey world Seems to moulder and vanish, I say; For to her who loveth and is not loved in return, There 's no night and no day. * Laddehn is a Persian flower of a rare fragrance and is one of the form and beauty of the Egyptian lotus. CALLIGRAPHY IN ORNAMENTATION 291 Dear heart, my beloved ! upon me, I pray, Let the light of thy rare smile be spent ; Let but a beggar's poor share of thy love Be mine, dear, and I am content. For to her who loveth as madly as I There can be no peace in flight ; For wheresoever she goeth, there will his image be, In the day and the night. My heart is thy nestling; it I have made An abiding-place for thy rest, While jealous thousands envy me sore For the great love for thee in my breast ! " In considering the marvellous fabric which was woven by the renowned Rejeb in the early years of the present century, one is somewhat confused as to the method of expressing the delight and satisfaction which it gives. (That a great artist has revealed his genius to us is manifest ; that his work was dedicated to the ruling Shah of Persia is most fitting ; and that the Poet Laureate of the time composed, for the borders that frame this panel of beauty, a love-song from the Queen to her Consort, is an evidence of the significant place which it held in the critical judgment of the Court : but when these things are fully noted we still have the blended dream of form and colour which well-nigh baffles analy- sis and characterization.) " The first flush of feeling upon an inspection of this royal weave attests the thoroughly joyous motive which was in the spirit of the weaver when he set his task before him. The design is purely floral and arabesque, with medallions carrying the sacred scarab, — the widely-known Eastern symbol of immortality. There is no pathetic touch anywhere ; no intimation of suffering or of battle. We have no lion dragging down a stag, — the revelation of the fiery sun putting out the moon with the pallor of death. Here only are suggestions of loveliness and hope upon grounds of azure. It was appropriate that simply the flowering fields and the shim- 292 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK mering sky should surrender their secrets of colour and form when a sonnet from a Queen's heart was to be thrown into the most precious warp and woof. (I do not question that the original order for this fabric came from the Queen, who sought the highest gifts in the realm to do for her what she was unable to do for herself.) An Oriental maiden will set her frame for a rug to be presented to her betrothed on the marriage-day, and will allow years for the labour. Such products of patient skill become heir- looms in the treasuries of the East. We are not surprised to learn, in the history of this costly example, that Rejeb, with five assistants, held it upon his loom for more than three years. This fairly corresponds to the fineness of the work. There are nearly 500 hand-knots to the square inch. The designs are graduated from a rich centre to borders of rare delicacy. " The sapphire medallion holds the outline of a pair of scarabs, placed head to head, with winged members. Their turquoise colour is contrasted by aground of bronze " brown. The frame of these figures is a leaf yellow, which is in turn surrounded by a wreath of flowers. The pendants at each end of the dark-blue medallion repeat in sharp accent of black the scarabs, and termi- nate upon wandering arabesques that interlace the entire body of the large panel. This is of pale blue, like a faintly misted sky through which the light softly shines. There is a variation in this blue, which is barred in a charming fashion, shifting as the fabric is moved. The flowers that wave over the background are pinks, wild roses, and the lotus. At each side of the central medallion are two long lotus buds joined tip to tip, holding upon a tone of old ivory a beautiful sketch of leaves and blossoms. " The borders of the rug are fascinating. The series on the inside of the broad band of Egyptian red which carries the in- scription is repeated on the outside ; this imparts harmony of effect. These lines are inlaid with dainty flowers so exquisitely wrought as to more than rival the perfection of jewelled mosaics. The text of the poem is a faithful reproduction of Persian characters, punctu- ated by brilliant silver points skilfully inwoven, " Whether one considers this Oriental joy from the standpoint of design or of colour, from the suggestions of symbolism or pure HUG-PLATE XLIII GOREVAN RUG B UG-PLA TE XLIII GOREVAN RUG Oriental Expert's Description " /f VERY finely wrought specimen of Gore- -" van weave.'" S. S. Costikyan. RUG-PLATE XLIII CALLIGRAPHY IN ORNAMENTATION 293 art, there Is in it a source of perpetual pleasure from which the owner may be constantly refreshed." XTbc UUObra Ot The Tu 8 hra a PPears very univer- ~ KX ... sally in Turkish decoration and is ^ ^ often erroneously described as beinc the name of Allah, so apt is the impatient student to use his fragment of information to force meaning into patterns. The Tughra appears on coins and em- broideries, and wherever as Sultan's emblem it will add value and interest. The sign is thus explained : " The Tughra is said to have originated in this way. Sultan Murad I (1359-89) entered into a treaty with the Ragusans; but when the document was brought for his signature, he, being unable to write, wetted his open hand with ink and pressed it on the paper. The first, second, and third fingers were together, but the thumb and fourth finger were apart. Within the mark thus formed the scribes wrote the names of Murad and his father, the little Khan, and the " Victor ever." The Tughra as we now have it is the result of this ; the three long upright lines represent Murad's three middle fingers, the rounded lines at the left side are his bent thumb, and the straight ones at the right his little finger. The Tughra contains the name of the ruling Sultan and his father, together with the word ' Khan ' and ' El Muzaffar- Daima ' or ' victor ever'. " TUGHRA OF ABD-UL-AZIZ. CHAPTER XXIV VITALITY IN PRIMITIVE DESIGNS A vast number of influences have swept from Asia, the mother country of the world, to the uttermost limits of the earth, which may be directly traced to ancient beliefs, and in modern design there seems to be a constant recurrence to type. The weaver's art is so susceptible to human thought that in it we find more absolute allegiance to sentiment than in the greater arts which require premeditation and preparation. Not that the mod- ern weaver necessarily carries within himself any knowledge of the meaning of patterns he uses ; but if left to himself, and told not to try to make anything new and startling, but to work an old-fashioned pat- tern, he will almost invariably revert to some inherited family tradition, and, with apologies for its simplicity, hand over something of inestimable value to the student of folk-lore. After another quarter of a cen- tury there will be no such opportunity afforded those who desire to make the present explain the past. Those of the older generation in the Orient who still cherish the habits and customs of their youth will have passed away. Commercialism will have done a more complete work ; tents will have been folded, and railroads will have chased the nomads from their R UG-PLA TE XLI V PERSIAN SILK PANEL It UG-PLA TE XLIV PERSIAN SILK PANEL Loaned by the Tiffany Studios TTf HAT ivill this Persian panel old, ' * With ivarp of silk and ivoof of gold, Reveal to my delighted eyes, Beyond the moment's glad surprise % The colours, so supremely rare, Are passing rich beyond compare ; Blending in blue and rose and green, Each lends to each an added sheen. The shadows chase the sunlit space, In glorious phantasy of grace They leap from bud and leaf and flower, Then fall o'er all in gentle shower Until, when suddenly a ray Of purest sunshine drives away All mist and shadows from the field, The matchless pattern stands revealed! RUG-PLATE XLIV VITALITY IN PRIMITIVE DESIGNS 295 retreats. Occidental patterns will be furnished to even a greater extent than they now are, and the modern rug will without doubt become a good floor- covering, but no longer a thing of sentiment. While still antique rugs are to be found, analytical study of them avails to prove many a disputed point and to verify vast numbers of speculations. In the study of patterns we must constantly remem- ber that when first they were invented those who made them believed in them. The lotus was painted and woven because it had a vital significance. The dragon portrayed in art was a veritable force, and the rosary was the outward sign of inward reverence. So with other forms none the less significant. Trace any one of them back through the years, and it may easily be proved that talismanic or magic power was attached to it. The Celts and Norsemen, in their interlaced orna- ments, have in their far northern homes used the ends of knots which were tied in the Orient, while Buddhism in the Far East has twisted into ribbons of fate other ends of the great world knots tied where the human race had its birth in central Asia. In the region be- tween the Black and Caspian seas we find in rug pat- terns the knot of destiny scattered about as isolated pattern. As one of the emblems of Buddha it is used as ornament throughout China and Japan to-day. Its significance is explained in various ways, but careful examination of its history and migration does not seem as yet to have interested the great students of the world. The Persian knot of destiny, so attrac- tively introduced by Vedder to the lovers of the Ru- 296 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK baiyat, differs in its artistic rendering from the simple Buddhist knot most often seen in Mongolian art. In Samarkand and Chinese rugs the knot of destiny is often found in border designs, and in Shiraz and Kirman rugs it partakes of a floral character and is not always accurately carried out. In Caucasian fabrics it is seen to the best advantage, and a Soumac rug is rarely found without carrying a knot some- where as a talismanic design. We must always remember that most designs have had two periods : the first when natural objects were simply copied, the second when metaphysical thought about the design, of however simple a character, has changed the natural into the conventional. To the twisting of the body of a serpent have been traced many of the early knot forms of Asia and Europe. Mohammedan arabesques partake of the double nature claimed by such ornamentation as may be traced not only to naturalistic representations but to well developed thought about them which has resulted in very accurate and methodic conventionalization. So modern and interesting a development as the bow-knot in modern decoration leads the thought back through the French use of it to the Egyptian girdle of Isis, and through that to the AnkJi, the key of life and emblem of immortality. This ornament, though undoubtedly phallic in meaning, has given rise to various renderings of the looped ribbon ; and whether or not it antedated the Buddhist temple orna- ment and other knotted bands in Chinese and Japan- ese art, it has been used through so many centuries that it is accepted as significant. The fillet, elsewhere B >:<:■>>:<: >;<-3 A. BUDDHIST KNOT OF DESTINY, B. BUDDHIST TEMPLE OR NAMENTS, C. "ANKH", THE EGYPTIAN KEY-OF-LIFE, D. GIRDLE OF ISIS E. CELTIC KNOT OF DESTINY F. KNOT DESIGNS IN SC VNDINAVIAN WEAVING VITALITY IN PRIMITIVE DESIGNS 297 described, partakes of the nature of the bow-knot ; the two loops and two ends, extending beyond the object they encircle, enhance its beauty and power. One of the lotus forms which has given rise to a desiVn similar to the Ankh is sometimes confounded with it. Dr. Petrie describes the ornament as " two lotus flowers tied together by the stalks." This emi- nent thinker and writer speaks with such authority on the origin and evolution of all pattern that we do well to ponder over his deductions. He writes: " The question of the origination of patterns at one or more centres has been as disputed as the origination of man himself from one or more stocks. Probably some patterns have been re- invented in different ages and countries, but as yet we have far less evidence of re-invention than we have of copying. It is easy to presuppose a repeated invention of designs, but we are con- cerned with what has been, and not with what might have been. Practically it is very difficult or almost impossible to point out decoration which is proved to have originated independently, and not to have been copied from the Egyptian stock. The influences of the modes of work in weaving have had much to do with the uniformity of patterns in different countries; apparently starting from different motifs, the patterns, when subject to the same structural influences, have resulted in very similar ornaments. This complicates the question undoubtedly ; and until we have much more research on the history of design, and an abundance of dated examples, it will be unsafe to dogmatize one way or the other. ... So far, however, as evidence at present goes, it may be said that — in the old world at least — there is a presumption that all the ornament of the types of Egyptian designs is lineally descended from those designs. Mr. Goodyear has brought so much evidence for this, that— whether we agree with all his views or not — his facts are reasonably convincing on the general descent of classic ornament from Egyptian, and of Indian and Mohamme- 298 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK dan from the classical, and even of eastern Asian design from Mohammedan sources. A good illustration of the penetrating effect of design is seen in a most interesting work on the prehis- toric bronzes of Minusiusk in central Asia, near the sources of the Yenesei River, and equidistant from Russia and from China, from the Arctic Ocean and from the Bay of Bengal. Here in the very heart of Asia we might look for some original design. But yet it is easy to see the mingled influences of the surrounding lands, and to lay one's finger on one thing that might be Norse, or another that might be Chinese, or another Persian. If, then, the tastes of countries distant one or two thousand miles in different directions can be seen moulding an art across half a continent, how much more readily can we credit the descent of design along the well- known historical lines of intercourse." How refreshing are the opinions of the erudite, whether we agree with them or not. They clear the atmosphere, and help us either to give up treasured ideas which are largely speculative because when weighed in the balance they are found wanting, or else they force us into a stronger belief in that which we are willing to indorse with all the intelligence we possess. The great thinkers of the world have as yet too little material and data with which to work. Ex- cavations are but begun; the " dated specimens" to which Dr. Petrie alludes are not sufficient to establish fact. All the more is there need of individual interest and research. All the more should even the most casual student insist upon the absolute. r MAP OJ 3 I A. VITALITY IN PRIMITIVE DESIGNS 299 w p < W Pi w s H V- sa - ■J ►J K PQ O - z INDEX Abbas, Shah, 172, 183, 229 Abd-ul-Aziz, 293 Abraham, 21, 9V, 120 Adventitious ornaments, 8G Afghan rugs, 9, 219, 220 Age, methods of testing, 46, 57 Agra, carpets, 236; castle, 237; mosque at, 238; Taj Mahal, 230 Akbar, Emperor, 229, 237 Aldrich, Anne Reeve, poem l)3 T , 19 Alexander the Great, 1, 80 Alexandrine weave, 86 Allah, name woven in rugs, 285; the ninety-nine beautiful names of, 18, 279 Almond in design, 200 Alphabets in design, 283 Anatolian rugs, 9, 94, 102 Angels, Mohammedan, 157 Angular hook pattern, 4, 5 Aniline dyes, 41, 46 Animal deities, 208, 209 Ankh, the, 296, 297 Antique rugs, 200 Application of colour, 45 Applique decoration, 97, 98 Arabic numerals, 285, 286 Arabic writing, 287 Arab rugs, 118 Ararat, 151, 153 Ardebil rugs, 301 Armenian church, 100 Armenian patchwork, 36 Ail, Assyrian, 133, 131, 245; Babylonian, 134; Buddhist, 68, 69; Chinese, 70, 213, 245; East Indian, 245; Euro- pean, 261; Hindu, 230, 234; Indian, 228, 245; Japanese, 70, 245; Moham- medan, 110, 230: Mongolian, 81; Persian, 172; Rhodian, 98, 102, 108 Arts, interdependent, 105 Asia, classic Greek ornament in, 80; influence of Christianity on or- nament of, 74; textiles of western, 98 Asia Minor, 95; embroideries from, 96; rugs from, 48, 105, 119, 120 Asiatic Society, Reports of, 22 Assyrian art, 133, 134, 245 Assyrian daisy, 69 Azerbiajau rugs, 201 Babylonian art, 133, 134 Bagdad strips, 53 Ball, and claw, 261 ; held by dragon, 257 Baluchistan rugs, 52, 220 Basket motif, 68 Bats in design, 226 Beads, use of, 11, 262, 263 Beauty, forms of, 177 Bedouins, 2 Bells, used to stir spirit-spaces, 92 Benjamin, S. G. W., Minister to Persia, 206, 21 1 Bethlehem, star of, 69 Blankets, Navajo, 32 Bobbins, 50 Bokhara, embroideries, 214; rugs, 9, 48, 209, 213, 215, 221, 222 Bookwalter, Mr., cited, 216, 217 Border designs, archaic, 257 Borders, poem upon, 290 Border stripes, 106, 167, 222 Botticelli, Alessandro, 36 I'.mindaries, geographical, 62 Bouquet, in design, 200; Mohammed's, 200 Bow-knot, 296 Brahminism, 233, 237 Brahmin rosary, 269 LIBRARY :TATB TMCHEW OOLLBOiA TA SAMARA. CALIFORNIA 3° 2 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Buddha, eight attitudes of, 08; hand of, 226; lotus throne of, 260; paradise of, 250 Buddhism, 67, 237; Chinese, 68, 81, 273; Mongolian, 69; Thibetan, 250 Buddhist art, in China, 68; in India, 69; in Thibet, 69 Buddhist praying-wheel, 127 Buddhist rosary, 272 Buddhist symbols, 68 Buddhist use of lotus, 244, 248 Burton, Sir Richard, 123 Butterflies in design, 226, 246 Byzantine influence in design, 99 Cabistan (Kabistan) rugs, 160, 165 Calcutta rugs, 234 Calendar, 137 Calligraphy, 231, 284 Camel's-hair, antique, 35 Canopy motif, 68 Carabagh (Karabagh) rugs, 168 Caravan, the great, 124 Caravans, description of, 123 Carpet, holy, travel of the, 120 Carpets, Agra, 236; Chinese wool, 224; famous, 14, 172, 181, 182; jail-made, 236; knot, 33, 34, 55, 56, 193, 224; Lahore, 236; Turkey, 10 Cartouches, 286, 287 Cashmere, Vale of, 77 Cashmere (Kashmir) rugs, 161, 168 Caste in India, 233 Caucasian rugs, 159, 161-163 Celtic design, 295 Ceremonial life in India, 233 Chaldean motifs, 433 Chaldeans, ensoph of the, 97 Chart system of study, 25 Chichi (Tchetchen or Tzitzi) rugs, 170 Chin, or pearl of the dragon, 258 China, Buddhist art in, 68; claims of, 58, 80; dragon in, 254, 255; the eight Immortals of, 252, 259; the lotus in, 249 Chinese art, 70, 213 Chinese Buddhism, 81, 273 Chinese Buddhist ornament, 68 Chinese carpets, 224 Chinese direction and colour system, 42, 209 Chinese dragon, 254-257, 260 Chinese Imperial yellow, 40 Chinese ornament, 213 Chinese philosophy, 210 Chinese rosary, 273 Chinese rugs, 212, 222-227, 261, 296 Chinese wool carpets, 224 Chintzes, Ispahan, 178 Christianity, influence of, on ornament in Asia, 74 Christian symbols and designs, 74, 92, 100, 135 Circles, winged, 127 Clappers, used to stir spirit-spaces, 92 Classic Greek ornament in Asia, 80 Claw and ball, 261 Clipping of pile, 56, 166, 194 Cloud forms, 156, 212, 227, 255 Colour, application of, 4."; of elements, 39; symbolism of, 38, 42, 43 Colouring, primitive methods of, 41 Colours, in Afghan and Khiva rugs, 219; sacred, 40, 285 Comb, emblem of Moslem faith, 19, 29 Commercialism, influence of, 294 Compass, 18, 43 Cone, 145, 146, 200 Conquest, Mohammedan, 181 Constellations in designs, 156, 221 Constructional ornament, 86 Consular Reports, 22 Conventional ornament, 86 Corea, heraldic crest of, 70 Cossacks, 169 Cotton in warp and woof, 160, 165, 191, 195, 235 Crenellations, 14, 133 Crest, heraldic, of Corea and Japan, 70 Cross, square, 69 Cross-stitch embroideries, 102 Crown-jewel in design, 200 Curzon, Lord, on Persian gardens, 175 Cut-work, 98 Cypress-tree, 19, 42, 135, 142, 144, 173, 174 INDEX 303 Daghestan rugs, 1C3, 164 Daisy, Assyrian, 69 D'Alviella, Count, 81 Damascus tiles, 98 Date, fertilization of the, 177 Dates woven in rugs, 285 David, shield or signet of, 72, 101, 118 Decoration, applique, 97, 98 Deities, animal, 208 Derbend rugs, 103, 165 Desert rugs, 10 Design, alphabets in, 283; archaic, 127; ball and claw, 261; bats in, 226; border, 257; butterflies in, 226; Byzantine, 99; Celtic, 295; Chinese, 208, 209, 227, 261; Christian, 74, 92, 100, 135; cloud, 156, 212, 227; con- stellations in, 156, 221; detail of finish in Indian, 228; evidence of thought in, 84; floral, 13, 10, 176; fungus in, 157; galley and water- craft, 5; geometric, 4, 6, 85, 116, 181, 162; Hebrew, 106, 118; influ- ence of elements on, 39, 40; in tents, 2, 4,98; link, 103, 167; octa- gon, 6, 104, 208, 209; Pagan, 100, 135; poinds of compass as influencing, 43; primitive, 294; Saruk, 203; Scandinavian, 127; Scutari, 51; spiral, 103; the triangle, 103; Turk- ish, 99, 100; two periods in, 296 Destiny, knot of, 68, 295 Diagrams, eight, 211, 212 Directions, the Chinese five. 209 Divisions, five geographical, 29, 61, 62; eight, of Caucasian rugs, 163 Doorga, Hindu goddess, 247 Dorje,69 Dorians as sun-worshippers, 107 Dowry rugs, 7, 11, 2S6, 287 Dragon, 809; ball held by, 257; Chinese, 254-257, 260, 261 ; in Indian and Per- sian rugs, 261 ; in Samarkand and Yarkand rugs, 225; in Turkestan rufjs, 261; Japanese, 256. 260; nine children of the, 260; pearl held by, 258; Saint (ieorge and the, 100, 254; Tartar, 255 Dragon king under the sea, 256, 201 Dragons, celestial, 256; cloud, 255; water, 259 Dyes, aniline, 41, 46; corrosive, 45 Eagle, 137, 138 Earth, sacred, 29, 170 East India Company, the, 229 East Indian ornament, 104 East Indian rugs, 230 Ecbatana, 181 Egyptian lotus, 204, 245 Eight diagrams, the, 211, 212 Eight divisions, of Caucasian rugs, 163; of location, 208 Eight emblems of Chinese Buddhist ornament, 68 Eight Immortals of China, 252,259 Elemental ideas, 91 Elements, influence of, on design, 39, 40 Elizabeth, Queen of England, 229 Emblems, Buddhist, 68; Mohammedan, 18, 19, 29; philosophical, 210 Embroideries, Asia Minor, 96; Bo- khara, 214; Greek and Russian (cross-stitchl, 102; Khiva, 213 Ensoph of the Chaldeans, 97 Epic poems, Hindu, 233 Equilateral triangle, 6, 101, 119 Ethnological Reports, 22 European art, 261 European methods in the East, 229 Evil eye, 11, 12, 117 Evil forces, animals controlling good and, 209 Examining rugs, two ways of, 109 Fabrics, Persian, 180 Feather in design, 200 Felt rugs, 31 Frii'i-sliiti, 259 Fenollosa, Mary McNeil, poem by, 252 Feraghan rugs, 191, 202 Ferguson, James, 152 Fertilization of the date, 177 Fillet, the, 227, 297 Finish in Indian design, detail of, 228 Firdusi, 181 Fire-altars, 74 Fire-worshippers, 173, 182, 187, 188 3°4 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Fish, twin, 68 Five directions of the Chinese, 42, 209 Five divisions of the rug-country, 29, 61,62 Flame motif, 255 Floral designs, 13, 16, 68, 176 Floral symbolism, 16 Forces, animals controlling good and evil, 209 Forms of beauty, 177 Fringe, 52 Fringed-tail turtle, 261 Fuh, or happiness, 226 Fuh-hi, 209, 211 Fujiyama, 155 Functional ornament, 86 Fung-hwang, 209 Fungus in design, 157 Galleys and water-craft designs, 5 Garden rugs, 174 Gardens of the Orient, 14, 15, 174, 175, 239 Gem, 137, 138 Genii, 157 Geography of the rug, 59 Geometric design and ornament, 4, 6, 85, 116, 131, 162 Ghileem (Khilim) rugs, 9, 11, 21, 32, 51,53 Ghiordez knot, 56 Ghiordez rugs, 48, 56, 105, 106, 109, 112 Oohei of Japan, 76 Gokcha, Lake, 151, 162 Golden profession, 284 Good and evil forces, animals con- trolling, 209 Good luck (show), 226 Gorevan rugs, 181, 198, 199 Grave rugs, 16 Greek embroideries, 102 Greek ornament in Asia, 80 Green, sacred colour, 285 Grotesque in Hindu ornament, 233, 234 Hadji, title for pilgrim to Mecca, 120 Hafiz, 181, 182 Hamadan rugs, 195, 203 Hand of Buddha, 226 Happiness, or fuh, 226 Hearth-rugs, 10, 12 Hebrew symbols, 97 Hebrew thought in design, 106, 118 Heraldic crest of Corea and Japan, 70 Herati pattern, 190-192 Herat rugs, 190 Herez rugs, 199 Hieroglyphs, 283 Hindu art, 230, 234 Hindu epic poems, 233 Hindu ornament, 228, 232-234 Hispano-Moresque, 99 Historic ornament, 85, 87, 201. 203 Holy carpet, travel of, 120-128 Hooked swastika pattern, 167 Hook pattern, angular, 4, 5 Hoshino-tama, 259 Hospitality, sanctity of, 13 Host-rugs, 10, 13 Hue, fivariste Regis, 250 Hunting-rugs, 10, 13, 177 Hymns, Vedic, 234 Ideas, primitive, 91 ; world, 89 Ideographs, 283 Imitation different from reproduction, 203 Immortals, the eight, of China, 252, 259 India, Brahmanism in, 233, 237; Bud- dhism in, 237; Buddhist art in, 69; caste system in, 233; ceremonial life in, 233; modern brain-control of natives in, 232, 235; Mohamme- dan art in, 230; the rosary in, 262 Indian art, 228 Indian rugs, 228, 230, 235, 246, 261 Indians, Zuni, 43 Indian ware, 147 Irak rugs, 201 Iran rugs, 48, 179, 180 Iridescence in rugs, 99 Isis, girdle of, 296 Ispahan chintzes, 178 Ispahan rugs, 69, 157, 178, 182-184 Ispahan styles in Persian rugs, 183 Jade, 38, 39 Jail-made carpets, 236 INDEX 3°5 Japan, heraldic crest of, 70 Japanese art, 70 Japanese dragon, 256, 260 Japanese gohti, 76 Japanese rosary, 264 Japanese rugs, 225 Japanese thunder-god, 70 Jehan, Shah, 230, 239 Jewish symbols, 97 Joo-e sceptre, 157 Jute, 31 Kaaba, the, 120, 121 Kabistan (Cabistan) rugs, 165 Karabagh (Carabagh) rugs, 168 Kara Dagh rugs, 201 Kashan rugs, 201 Kashgar rugs, 222, 227 Kashmir (Cashmere) rugs, 161, 168 Kaweh, story of, 189 Kazak rugs, 169, 170 Kchatchli-Bokhara rugs, 218, 219 Kermanshah rugs, 201 Khilim rugs, !), 21, 32, 51, 53 Khiva embroideries, 213 Khiva rugs, 9, 48, 207, 219 Khorassan rugs, 192, 193 Kirman rugs, 69, 184, 188 Kirrnan shawls, 184 Kiswah, or covering for the Kaaba, 121 Kiz-Killeem (Kiz-Khilim) rugs, 11 Knot carpets, 83, 34, 55, 56, 193, 224 Knot of destiny, 68, 295 Knots, bow, 296; Gthiordez, 56; num- ber to square inch, 33, 34 Kodaks in the Orient, 152 Konieh rugs, HI Koran, sentences of, in rugs, 287 Kuban rugs, 165 Kulah rugs, 17. 48, 94, 105, 112,114 Kurdish rugs, 133 Kurdistan rugs, 188, 131, 194 Kuan-Yin, 201 Ladik rugs, 94, 102, 105 Lahore carpets, 236 Lakes, region of three, 51, 163 Lake Urumiah, 151, 102, 201 Lake Van, 151, 162 Lamas, lotus-prayer of the, 250 Leaf-forms, 144, 150 Life, tree of, 140 Link-iu-lozenge pattern, 103, 167 Location, eight divisions of, 208 Looms, 50; silk, first used in China, 208 Lotus, the, its forms, legends, symbol- ism, use in design, etc., 19, 68, 69, 81, 182-184, 186, 191, 204, 242, 244- 246, 248-252, 260 Lotus prayer, the, 250 Lozenge, link-in-, 103, 167 Lozenge forms, 212 Luck, good (shoic), 226 Lung, the dragon of China, 260 Lustre, metallic, 99 Magdaism, 74 Marks, tribal, 208 Materials, 31 Mats, reed, 32 Meander, early handling of, 106 Mecca, 18, 125; pilgrimage to, 77, 120; rugs, 125, 126; sacred earth from, 29, 170; sacred stone of, 120 Medallion, design in, 69, 81, 182-184 Melhaz (Melace or Milez) rugs, 94, 105, 114 Meshed rugs, 201 Metal in rugs, 58 Metallic lustre, 99 Methods of approaching rug for study, 109 Methods of cheapening rugs, 57 Methods of testing rugs, 33 Migration, of pattern, 75, 77, 80; of symbols, 81 Mihrab, the, 18 Milez (Melace or Melhaz) rugs, 94, 105, 114 Mohammedan, spot on which he rests his head in prayer, 102 Mohammedan angels, 157 Mohammedan art, 116, 230 Mohammedan conquest, 181 Mohammedan emblems, 18, 19, 29 Mohammedan influence in textile art, 73, 157 }o6 THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Mohammedanism, 72 Mohammedan ornaments, 71 Mohammedan prayer-rugs, 161 Mohammedan rosary, 18, 277 Mohammedan rule in Persia, 173, 181 Mohammedan worship, emblems used in, 18, 19, 29 Mohammed's bouquet, 200 Mongolian art, 81, 212, 227, 255 Mongolian influence in Daghestan pat- terns, 1G4 Mordants, 46 Mosaic style of weaving, 57, 111 Moslem faith, sacred cities of the, 182 Moslem symbols, 18, 19, 29 Mosque rugs, 11, 13, 16 Mosques, at Agra, 238; at Mecca, 120 Mosul rugs, 133 Motifs, Assyrian, 133; Babylonian, 133; Chaldean, 133; Chinese Buddhist, 68; cloud, 156, 212, 227, 255; flame, 79, 127, 173, 255; link, 103, 167; rain, 79; Scutari, 51; S form, 167; spiral, 103; star, 79, 127; sun, 79, 103, 127; tree, 197; umbrella, 68; urn, 68; wave or water, 4, 13, 255; wheel, 127; winged circle, 127 Mountains, sacred, 153-155 Mount Sumeru, 155 Mythological design in Ispahan rugs, 183 Myths, star, 156 Names op Allah, 279 Nap, long and short, 35 Natural colour of wool in rugs, 41, 195 Naturalistic ornament, 86, 116 Navajo blankets, 32 Needles, 50 Nomad weavers, 87, 182, 216, Norse design, 127, 295 Number, sacred, 211 Numerals, Arabic, 285, 286 Objects, ceremonial art, 233 Octagon in design, 6, 104, 208, 209 Opus consuetum, 36 Oriental gardens, 14, 15, 174, 175, 239 Oriental rug a thing of sentiment, 1, 10,27 Ornament, Buddhist, 68; caligraphic, 231; Chinese, 85, 87, 201, 203, 213; Chinese Buddhist, 68 ; classic Greek, 80; constructional, 86; con- ventional, 86; East Indian, 104; functional, 86; geometric, 4,6,85, 116, 131; Greek, 80; Hindu, 228, 232-234; influence of Christianity on Asiatic, 74; in tents, 4, 98; Mongolian, 255; naturalistic, 86, 116; of adventition, 86; Saracenic, 73; tufts as, 36 Ouchak rugs, 115 Pagan symbols and designs, 100, 135 Pa-hsien, or eight Immortals of China, 252, 259 Palace rugs, 14 Pall of R. L. Stevenson, 8 Palm-leaf in design, 145, 147, 148, 200 Paradise, Buddhist, 250; lotus on the sea of, 249; Mohammedan, 15; Mongolian idea of, 157 Patchwork, 36 Pattern, angular hook, 4, 5; grains of rice, 225; migration of, 75, 77, 80; Y, 212, 227 Patterns, border, 64, 87, 88; Herati, 190-192; hooked swastika, 167; Persian, copied in India, 230, 233, 240; reciprocal trefoil, 167; Sara- band, 200; sceptre in, 212; study of, 295; symbolic, 89, 241; taran- tula, 167; tree, 167; tribal, 64, 87, 88, 133, 208; Turcoman in Persian rugs, 180; Turkish, 100; wave, 4, 13,255 Peacock throne, 230, 239 Pear in design, 200 Pearl held by dragon, 258, 259 Pearl pattern, 212 Persepolis, 181 Persia, cypress tree of, 142, 144; gar- dens of, 14, 15, 174; knot-carpets of, 56, 58, 180, 193; legendary his- tory of, 189, 190; Mohammedan INDEX 3°7 rule iu, 173, 181; periods of art in, 172 Persian fabrics, 180 Persian, or Sinneh (Senna), knot car- pets, 56, 193 Persian patterns, 230, 233, 240 Persian knot of destiny, 295 Persian prayer-rug, poem by Anna Reeve Aldrich on a, 19 Persian rugs, 183, 202, 261 Philosophical emblems, 210 Philosophy, Chinese, 210 Pile, clipping of, 56, 166, 194 Pilgrimages, to Mecca, 120; to seven holy cities of Mohammedan faith, 122 Plum-red, in Yomud rugs, 222 Poems, Hindu epic, 233; on a Persian prayer-rug, 19; upon borders, 290 Poetry of rug-making, 6 Points of compass as influencing de- sign, 43 Pomegranate design in medallion, 69 Potter's wheel invented in China, 208 Prayer, descriptions of methods of, 75; lotus, 350 Prayer-niche in rugs, 112, 219 Prayer-rugs, 16-19, 160, 161, 219, 220 Prayer-wheels, 76, 127 Primary colours in rugs, 47 Primitive designs, 294 Primitive ideas, 91 Propagation vase. 851 Protectives, bead, 11, 263 Puran, translation of legend from, 217 Purity, the lotus an emblem of, 215 Rain motif, 79 Reciprocal trefoil, 167 Reed mats, 32 Rejeb, weaving by, 291 Relief surfaces, 36 Religions, 66 Reports, Ethnological and Consular, 82; of Asiatic Society, 22 Rhodian art, 108 Rhodian pottery, 98, 102 Rice pattern, 225 River-loop, 200 Robinson, Vincent, 22 Roman Catholic rosary, 281 Rosary, Brahmin, 269; Buddhist, 272; Chinese, 273; Indian, 262; Japa- nese, 264; Mohammedan, 18, 277; of Siva, 270; Roman Catholic, 281; Thibetan, 274 Rose gardens of Persia, 15 Royal patronage of weavers, 180, 183, 229, 240 Rug country, five divisions of the, 29, 61, 62 Rug-making, the poetry of, 6 Rugs: Afghan, 9, 219, 220; Anatolian, 9, 94, 102 ; antique, 200; Arab, 118; Ardebil, 201; Asia Minor, 48, 105, 119, 120; Azerbiajan, 201; Baluchi- stan, 52, 220; blue and white, 2S>; Bokhara, 9, 48, 209, 213-215, 221, 222; Cabistan, 100, 105; Calcutta, 234; Carabagh, 168; Cashmere, 161, 168; Caucasian, 159, 161, 163, 295; Chi- chi (Tzitzi), 170; Chinese, 212, 222- 227,296; Daghestan, 163, 164; Der- bend, 163, 165; desert, 10; dowry, 7, 11, 286, 287; dragons in, 225, 261; East Indian, 228,230; examination of, 109; felt, 31; Feraghan, 191, 202; fringe of, 52; garden, 174 ; geography of, 59; Ghileem, 11 ; (see also Khilim), Ghiordez, 48, 56, 105, 106, 109-112; Gorwan, 181, 198, 199; grave, 10; Hamadan, 195, 196, 203; hearth, 10, 12; Herat, 190; Herez, 199; host, 10, 13; hunting, 10, 13, 177; Indian, 228. 230, 235, 840, 261; Irak, 201; Iran, 48, 179. 180; iridescence in, 'X>; Ispahan, 69 157, 17S, 182-184; jail-made, 236; Japanese, 225; Kabistan. 160, 165; Karabagh, 168; Kara Dagh, 801 : Kashan, 201; Kashgar, 222, 227; Kashmir, 161, 168; Kazak, 169, 170; Kchatchli-Bokhara, 21S, 219; Ker- manshah, 201; Khilim. 9, 11. 21, 32, 51, 53; Khiva, 9, 48, 807, 219; Kho- rassan, 192; kinds, 10-17; Kirman, 69, 184 188; Ki/.-Khilim. 11: Koni- eh, 94; Kuban, 165; Kulah, 47, 48, 3°8 THE ORI ENTAL RUG BOOK 94,105,112-114; Kurdish, 133; Kur- distan, 133, 134, 194; Ladik, 94, 102, 105; made for journey to Mecca, 77; made for princesses, 286; made under royal patronage, 183; Mec- ca, 125, 126; Melace, 94, 105, 114 Melhaz, 94, 105, 114; meshed, 201 metal in, 58; metallic lustre, 99 methods of cheapening, 57; meth- ods of studying, 109; methods of testing, 33; Milez, 94, 105, 114; modern and antique, 203, 204 ; Mo- hammedan prayer, 161; mosque, 11, 13, 16; Mosul, 133; Ouchak, 115; palace, 14; Persian, 19, 56, 58, 180, 1&3, 193, 202, 261 ; prayer, 16, 18, 19, 160, 161, 220; prayer-niche in, 112, 219: primary colours in, 47; * Samarkand, 222, 225, 261 ; Sara- band, 200, 203; Sarakh, 201; Sehna, 56, 193, 194: shapes, 10-13; Shem- aka, 53, 161-168; Shiraz, 49, 52, 196,197,201; Shirvan, 160, 167; silk, 175, 286, 287; Sinneh, 56, 193, 194; Sirab, 201; Smyrna, 94; Soumae, 53, 161, 168; styles in, 27, 62, 79, 80, 197; Sultanabad, 201, 203; Tabriz, 185, 201-203; Tchechen, 170; Tehe- ran, 201; Tekke, 216; tent, 10, 12; throne, 11, 13, 202; tribute, 87, 132; Turcoman, 69, 206, 212, 220; Turk- estan, 216, 261; Turkish, 59, 93, 94, 97, 99, 100, 133; Tzitzi, 170; wed- ding, 12; Yarkand, 222, 225, 227; Yomud, 221, 222 Russian embroideries, 102 Sacred cities, 182 Sacred colour, 285 Sacred earth, 29, 170 Sacred mountain, 153-155 Sacred number ten, 211 Sacred stone of Mecca, 120 Sacred tree, 135, 150 Saint George and the dragon, 100, 254 Salaams, or thought-bouquets, 177, 184 Samarkand, 152 Samarkand rugs, 222, 225, 261 Saraband pattern, 200 Saraband rugs, 200, 203 Saracenic conquest, 21 Saracenic ornament, 73 Sarakh rugs, 201 Saruk (Sarook) designs, 203 Scandinavian design, 127 Sceptre, or joo-e wand, 157 Sceptre in pattern, 212 Scroll, 104, 212 Scutari motifs of design, 51 Sea of Paradise, the. lotus on the, 249 Seal in design, 200 Seal, or signet, of Solomon, 72, 101 Sehna rugs, 56, 193 Serpent in knot-design, 296 S-form motif, 167 Shah Abbas, 172, 183, 229 Shah Jehan, 230, 239 Shalimer, gardens of, 239 Shapes of rugs, 9 et seq. Shawls, Kirman, 184 Shemaka or Soumae rugs, 53, 161-168 Shield or signet of David, 72, 101, 118 Shintoism, 70 Shiraz rugs, 49, 52, 196, 197; as votive offerings, 197 ; pile, tree-motif, webbing in, 191, 201 Shirvan rugs, 160, 167 Show (good luck), 226, Shuttles and bobbins, 50 Signet of David, 72, 101, 118; of Solo- mon,;^, 101 Silk. Sicilian, 103 Silk rugs, 175, 286, 287 Sinneh or Persian knot carpets, 56, 193 Sirab rugs, 201 Siva, the rosary of, 270 Sixteenth century, famous carpets of the, 14, 172, 181, 182 Smyrna rugs, 94 Solomon, King, his carpet, 18, 19; seal of, 72, 101 Soumae or Shemaka rugs, 53, 161-168 Spindles, 50 Spindle-whorls, 53 Spinning, 53 Spinning damsel, story of the, 223 . INDEX 3°9 Spiral in design, 103 Spirit-spaces, use of clappers and bells to stir, 92 Square cross, 69 Star circles and bands, 156 Star, eight-pointed, 164; of Bethlehem, 69; six-pointed, 66, 97, 118 Star forms, 127, 216, 252 Star goddess, 223 Star myths, 156 Stars, effulgent in design, 166 Stevenson, R. L., pall of, 8 Stone, sacred, of Mecca, 120 Stripes, border, 106, 167, 222 Strips, Bagdad, 53 Study, chart system of, 25; of pat- tern, 295 Styles, great world, 80; in Persian rugs, 197 ; of rugs, five, 62, 79, 80 ; of weaving, 27; Sehna, 193, 194 Sultanabad rugs, 201, 203 Sultan's seal, 293 Sumeru, Mount, 155 Sun-boat, 91, 128 Sun in Turcoman designs, 213, 219 Sun-worshippers, 107, 127 Susa, 181 Swastika, 68, 80, 82, 127, 227; the hooked, 167 Symbolic patterns, 89, 241 Symbolism of colour, 38, 42, 43 Symbols, Buddhist, 68; Christian, 74. 98, 100, 186; floral, 16; Jewish, 97; migration of, 81 ; of Moslem faith, 18, 19, 29; origin of, 68; Pagan, 100, 135 Tabriz rugs, 185, 201-203 Tae-kieh,orYangand Ving, 71, 209, 211 Taj Mahal. Agra, 830 Tand Y forms, 227 Talismans, 11, 12 Tamerlane, or Timur-Leng, mosque and tomb of, 158, 212 Tarantula pattern. 167 Tartar, dragon connected with reign of 111.', '.'.o Tartar influence in Turcoman rugs, 213 Tats, Japanese dragon, 260 Tchechen (Tzitzi), rugs 70 Teheran rugs, 201 Tekke or Turcoman rugs, 69, 206, 212- 220 Temples, rugs in, 8 Ten, the sacred number, 211 Tent, of Abraham, 21 ; of Alexander, 1 Tents, Bedouin, 2; designs worked in canvas of, 2, 4, 98; Oriental, 1, 126; ornamentation of, 4, 98 ; rugs in, 1 Tests of age, 46, 57 Textiles of western Asia, 98 Thibet, Buddhist art in, 69; the rosary of, 274 Thibetan-Buddhist lotus prayer, 250 Thought, evidence of , in design, 84, 10B, 118 Thought-bouquets, or salaams, 177, 184 Thought patchwork, 36 Throne, peacock, 230, 239 Throne-rugs, 11, 13, 202 Thunder-god of Japan, 70 Tide-jewel, 259 Tiger, white, 259 Tiles, Damascus, 98 Time, beads as records of, 263 Timur-Leng, mosque and tomb of, 152, 212 Tombs, rock-cut, 19; rugs on, 8 Tomoye, 70 Tooba-tree, 15 Tree, 137, 138; cypress, 19,42, 135, 173, 174; of life, 140; pattern, 167,197; sacred, 135, 150; tooba, 15 ; wor- ship, 139 Trefoil, reciprocal, 167 Trellis, 212 Triangle, in design, 6, 101, 103, 119, 164 Tribal patterns, 64. 87, 88, 133, 208 Tribute rugs, 87, 132 Trisula, 68 Tufts as ornamentation, 36 Tughra of Abd-ul-Aziz, 893 Tukt Tanas, peacock throne, 230, 239 Turcoman pattern, 180 3io THE ORIENTAL RUG BOOK Turcoman rugs, 69, 206, 212, 220; Tartar influence in, 213 Turkestan rugs, 215; dragon forms in, 261, Turkey carpets, 10 Turkey red, 48 Turkish designs, 99, 100 Turkish (or Ghiordez) knot, 56 Turkish religion, 97 Turkish rugs, 56, 93, 94, 97, 99, 100, 133 Turtle, fringed-tail, 261 Twin fish, 68 Tzitzi rugs, 170 Umbrella motif, 68 Urashima, 261 Urn motif, 68 Ursa Major, 221 Urumiah, Lake, 151, 162, 201 Van, Lake, 151, 162 Vase, propagation, 251 Vedic hymn, 234 Velvet, Italian, 103; origin of, 224 Votive offerings, rugs as, 197 War, cause of migration of pattern, 80 Warp and woof, 33, 50, 57, 58, 165, 194, 195, 222, 229, 286; cotton, 160, 165, 191, 195, 235 Water-craft designs, 5 Water-dragons, 259 Wave motif, 4, 13, 255 Weave, Alexandrine, 86 Weavers, nomad, 87, 182, 216; royal patronage of, 180, 183, 229, 240 Weaving, methods of, 57, 111, 184, 216- 218 ; the work of Rejeb, 291 Webbing, in Shiraz rugs, 197, 201; in Turcoman rugs, 220 Wedding rugs, 12 Wheel, the, 127 ; the potter's, 208 Wheel forms derived from the lotus, 252 Wheel of the law, 68 Wheels, prayer, 76, 127 White tiger, 259 Wilson, Thomas, 82 Winged circles, 127 Wool, differences in, 32; in Kazak rugs, 170 ; in Kirman rugs, 184 ; natural colours in, 41, 195; white in Hama- dan rugs, 196 Wool carpets made in China, 224 World ideas, 89 Worship, sun, 127 Writing, Arabic, 287 Yak's hair, 235 Y and T forms, 227 Yang and Yin, orTae-kieh, 71, 209,211 Yarkand rugs, 222, 225, 227 Yellow, Imperial, of China, 40 Yomud rugs, 221, 222; plum-red in, 222 Y pattern, 212, 227 Yung-Ching, 222 Zigzag, in border stripes, 106 ; in Per- sian carpets, 176 Zodiac, signs of the, 208 Zoroastrianism, or fire-worship, 74, 173, 181, 187, 188 Zuui Indians, 43 .* 4 K. \ *