Chapter 4

_Kirman_ rugs, made in the province of Irak-Ajemi, frequently have a medallion in the centre, entwined with flowers. Sometimes the Tree of Life is represented, its branches bearing different fruits, and often there are symbolical little birds in the border. Sometimes a vase of flowers is the principal ornament, or several small trees either with or without foliage. Silk has often been introduced into the old rugs with charming effect. The Kirman rug is one of the most easily recognizable. It is of very fine quality, and is highly decorative. Antique rugs of this kind have the finest of wool, and, with the artistic arrangement of beautiful flowers, cypress trees, and palm effects, are most pleasing. One of the finest in this country is reproduced in this volume with a description accompanying it.

_Kurdistan_ (the Persian portion) is a large region inhabited by the nomadic tribes called Kurds; and the sheep and goats belonging to these tribes furnish the fine wool that is woven into Kurdish rugs. The color effects are generally good. Often dark blues and reds form the groundwork, in the centre of which is a lozenge or large diamond form ornamented with small designs of the palm leaf. Then, again, a repeated design is laid out over the field. Designs of the tree, palm, and rosette, and various floral forms appear. By examining the web at one end, a design in colored wool is generally found. In one of these rugs in my own collection the centre contains twelve different symbolical designs, including the turtle, comb, star, and cross, while the corner areas and borders hold at least thirty-five others. All of them are so carefully woven that much thought must have been bestowed upon this very strong, splendid rug.

_Laristan_ (see Niris) rugs.

_Meshhed_ (see Khorassan) rugs.

_Mir-Saraband_ (see Saraband) rugs.

_Muskabad_ (see Sultanabad) rugs.

_Niris_ rugs are made a little to the southeast of Shiraz, in the province of Laristan, and the latter name is that used in the Western markets. All around Lake Niris are pastured sheep with fine lustrous wool which is used in the manufacture of rugs. In the modern ones floral and geometric stripes often alternate through the field, or there is a medallion in the centre of a plain field, with corner areas. The border carries several designs. There is a checked effect in the webbing at the ends. The rugs are very strong and excellent for hard use. In the older ones blue was used in the field, with rather large forms of the palm leaf.

_Oustri-Nan_ rugs have the palm-leaf design over the field, and a good deal of white in the borders. They are firm and durable.

_Saraband_ (Serebend) rugs are woven in the district of Sarawan. They always have a distinct feature in the small palm leaves that fill the field. These leaves have the hook turned at the top from left to right in one row, and right to left in the next. Usually the field that these palm leaves adorn is soft red or rose in color. Again it may be deep blue, or occasionally ivory, in which case the palm design is in red or blue. The border is always harmonious, and there are many narrow stripes which form it. The widest one is generally in an ivory tone, while the undulating vine and small flower forms appear in some of the borders. Then, too, one finds the Caucasian influence in some of the borders, and the reciprocal trefoil is often seen. Occasionally a human figure is carefully outlined in the border, and this brings a personal element into the rug. Then again, the date is woven in. Mir is the name of the village in this district where the design had its source, and in the trade to-day the finest of these rugs is often called _Mir-Saraband_.

_Sarakhs_ (see Bijar) rugs.

_Saruk_ rugs are very closely woven in the hamlet bearing this name. The floral designs scattered over the field of rose, dark red, or blue show a spontaneity of workmanship that is not governed by Western enterprise, though, curiously enough, aniline dyes prevail. The wool is very fine. The border is composed of a wide middle stripe, with a narrow one on either side.

_Savalan_ (see Sultanabad) rugs.

_Serapi_ (see Sirab) rugs.

_Shiraz_, the capital city of Pars, has exported some of the most interesting and exquisite rugs in existence. In the sixteenth century Shiraz was at the height of its prosperity, and all the neighboring country was noted for its flocks of sheep, which produced the finest of wool. Rugs were made at Shiraz for the reigning Shahs, who had palaces there, and the workmanship displayed in them was most beautiful. The city was visited by an earthquake in 1853, and since that catastrophe the manufacture of rugs has not regained its former prosperity; yet great improvement has been shown in recent years, and the same vegetable dyes are still in use. The Shiraz is often called the Mecca rug, as it is the one frequently selected by pilgrims to that city. Deep rich blues are often seen in a Shiraz rug, and frequently stripes extend throughout the centre, as well as in the border, where diamond forms and crosses are also frequently seen. The medallion and the palm leaf are also found. Many Persian poets have sung of the wonderful rose gardens of Shiraz, and the rug weaver there has faithfully reproduced in glorious hues these beautiful flowers. Other flowers, too, decorate this rug. The webbing at the ends is embroidered in colored yarns.

_Sinna_ rugs are made in the province of Irak-Ajemi. They have a very fine texture, and are greatly prized by rug-lovers. The pile is of the best wool, and very closely cut. The Herati design, minutely woven, often occupies the entire field. Again, a lozenge-shaped figure is in the centre, and covered with the most delicate tracery. The field of the rug is often in white or ivory, or in soft blue, red, yellow, or even peach-blow tint. Yellow is used frequently in the border and corner areas. Often the finest of these rugs will be puckered near the edges; that is because the yarn is so tightly twisted in the weaving. Owing in part to this firm twisting and also to the fine, close knotting, there is much durability in the best specimens.

_Sirab_ rugs are woven in the village of that name in the district of Azerbaijan. In Western markets the name has been corrupted, and the rugs are there called _Serapi_. These rugs come in large sizes, and are of excellent colors. A medallion of good proportions occupies the field, and about this floral designs are arranged. Sometimes inscriptions are seen in the rug.

_Sultanabad_ is one of the most important of the modern rug-producing regions of Western Asia. Factories are kept busy supplying the market, and in many cases excellent rugs are manufactured. This is especially true when old patterns are used, for no modern ones sent out by Western firms can be deemed worthy to take the place of original Oriental designs. Large quantities of rugs from this district are exported to the United States, and are then frequently called _Savalans_. The groundwork is generally light in color, and the designs are many, while the variety of brilliant hues is perhaps the largest in Persia. _Muskabad_ is a trade name for a certain grade of rug from this district.

_Tabriz_ rugs are now supplied in large bales to the trade from factories that are under Western jurisdiction. They are of well selected yarn, closely woven, and very durable. The weaving is faultless. The centre medallion is in a rich color, set in a field of ivory or other solid color, and decorated with floral forms. The sharply defined corner areas and the borders also contain floral designs in attractive colors. Sometimes cartouches with lines from a Persian poet or birds and animal forms are seen in the borders.

_Yezd_, where the fire-worshippers live, furnishes rugs with a short pile, but these are used chiefly in mosques, and seldom leave Persia.

A fine Persian rug is valuable, even at the seat of manufacture. A small one, measuring three by four and a half feet, quite modern, but very fine and with splendid colors, has been sold at Teheran for eight hundred dollars.

TURKISH RUGS

The term Turkish Rugs includes all those rugs that are manufactured within the Turkish Empire, whether the manufacturers be Kurds or Circassians or Christians; the last of these names comprises the Armenians, the Greeks, and the Syrians. Turkish rugs are not so finely woven as Persian; they have a longer pile and looser texture. As they are usually very soft and thick, the foot when walking upon them feels as if it were treading upon a bed of moss.

The principal rug-manufacturing district of Turkey is Karajah Dagh. Much weaving is done also at Cæsarea. The rugs found at Adana are generally from the latter region, while those sold at Urfa are either from the Kurdish territory or from Persia. In Constantinople are seen rugs from almost every part of Asia, but the greatest number are from within the Turkish territory of Transcaucasia.

Each rug-weaving district of Turkey seems to have a distinct and individual class of rugs; and this is not surprising, for there are a number of different tribes, each of which impresses its individuality upon the work. The surface configuration and the climate of a place have much to do with the quality of the rugs manufactured within it. Naturally, in the rocky, mountainous regions the flocks consist of goats instead of sheep. The sheep would be injured among the steep, sharp crags, and much of their wool would be lost, as it would adhere to the rocks. The goats, however, being hardy, easily jump from crag to crag, sustaining no injury to their hair.

The hair of the goat is woven into the mohair and so-called Smyrna rugs, and also into what is known as Paul's Tent Cloth. This last is woven quite differently from other rugs; it is the coarsest of all, and the women weave it on the ground. To make it firm enough to keep out every drop of rain requires laborious work with the fingers, but when the cloth is woven with care it is a most excellent shelter from the storm. A large Paul's Tent, such as a rich man owns, costs about four hundred dollars. It shelters the women of the household, as well as the cattle; and one part is partitioned off for a guest-room.

In Turkey the floor is always covered with matting, and the matting, in its turn, is so closely covered with rugs as to be quite concealed. In large cities rugs are used in the Summer for divan and couch covers; in the Winter the same rugs serve as beds.

Constantinople is the greatest rug market in the world. Every known nation is represented in that wonderful city, where the ancient industrial skill of Asia meets the steadily increasing demands of the West. Nothing can be more interesting to the rug-lover than to wander through the streets and byways, observing the different phases of his favorite industry. The Custom House, where enormous bales of rugs await transportation; the great warehouses, which handle only at wholesale; the bazaars, and even the street vendors, possess each an absorbing interest. The travelling merchants from Persia, who yearly journey to Constantinople, establish themselves in that busy section of the city known as Stamboul. Here they erect their khans, covering the walls and floors with rugs, many of which are really splendid in tone and quality. The large retail houses at Constantinople usually have collections of very choice rugs.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CERTAIN TURKISH RUGS

Akhissar rugs have a thick pile, and are loosely woven. Their colors are usually red and green. Rugs of mohair are made at Akhissar.

_Anatolia_, or Asia Minor, produces both rugs and mats of good quality. The Anatolian rug is large and very heavy. The Anatolian mats are made in large numbers, and are very thick and soft. They are used by the natives for pillows. Some are very beautiful; and although many are turned out with aniline dyes, many others are splendidly colored with vegetable dyes. The designs are many and varied.

_Bergamo_ (ancient Pergamos) rugs have a long, silky pile, and are almost square. They are quite thick, and have geometrical figures in the centre, while the borders are floral in effect. The colors are rich, generally yellow, green, red, and blue. A red webbing at each end carries a blue or yellow embroidered stripe. Antique Bergamos are very beautiful.

_Brusa_ (Broussa) had a fresh impetus in the rug industry a few years ago. Very fine and beautiful silk rugs are woven there now by Turkish women and girls. The Great Mosque and the Mosque of the Thunderbolt at Brusa both contain rare old rugs.

_Cæsarean_ rugs have a thicker pile than any of the rugs woven in Anatolia. They are garish in color and are stained with chemical dyes. Large numbers are turned out by the factories, but they in no way resemble the good rugs of former years, except in their durability.

_Cassaba_ (see Sparta) rugs.

_Demirdji_ rugs are a product of modern growth, unknown thirty-five years ago. To-day the town is a large manufacturing centre. The rugs bear strong Turkish elements. They are heavy and durable, and woven of excellent wool when of the first quality. There are, however, three different qualities. The weavers of these rugs have a small pattern which they reproduce in the large sizes.

_Ghiordes_ rugs of antiquity are not in the market. Once in a decade it is possible such a rug changes hands, but this is either the result of lack of knowledge on the part of the owner, or because he is in pecuniary straits. The rug derives its name from the ancient town of Ghiordium, and its form is that of a prayer rug. The weavers were most painstaking, and used the finest of dyes and designs. The hanging mosque lamp, or a tree form, is suspended from the high point of the niche, and a column appears on either side of the field, extending to the spandrels. Above is a horizontal panel, and there is generally one below the field. In colors there is a discriminating use of the old porcelain blue, rare green, red, yellow, ivory, and white. When white was chosen, the weavers often substituted cotton for wool, thinking it would keep its purity of tone longer. The field is generally in one of these solid colors. The borders are most interesting and beautiful. The main stripe is usually ornamented with well-defined designs of small flowers and leaves, arranged with a square effect. The other borders are generally floral, while the zigzag water motif encloses the field. The apex of the mihrab or niche runs high in the Ghiordes rug. A silk fringe often finishes the top. One collector in Constantinople has many very fine and rare specimens. He began to collect Ghiordes rugs years ago, before the value of the rug became generally known. The modern rugs are very coarse, and have no resemblance to the old ones.

_Hereke_ rugs receive their name from the village about forty miles from Constantinople, on the Gulf of Ismid, where the Sultan has established the imperial factories and a school of art. About four hundred young women, mostly Greeks, are here actively employed in weaving rugs in silk and wool. His Imperial Majesty is anxious to give employment to the village girls, and takes much interest in this industry, which was started about fifteen years ago. The rugs are reproductions, for the most part, of famous antiques belonging to the Sultan. In 1898 Emperor William of Germany visited this factory. After his return home the Sultan sent him a large number of Hereke rugs. In 1902, during one of my sojourns in Berlin, I was permitted by the courtesy extended to me by the court official in charge of these rugs to see the entire collection arranged in one section of the Palace. Beside the magnificent antique Persian rugs belonging to the Imperial House of Germany these modern Turkish rugs were startling in color; but the texture was fine, and time will, of course, subdue the glowing colors, which are now often softened in the Western markets by a washing process known to certain firms. Old mohair rugs are also being reproduced at the Hereke factory with good results. Great attention is paid in all these rugs to exactness of detail in reproduction.

_Kara-Geuz_ rugs are mostly of the runner order, with mixed designs and fugitive colors.

_Karaman_ has a considerable trade with Smyrna. Its rugs are coarse, loosely woven, and not at all attractive.

_Kir-Shehr_ rugs are made in the province of Angora. Because of their durability and thickness they are both useful and desirable. Their colorings are rather strong, but fine; green is the most usual color, although red and blue are frequent. The designs are mostly of Arabic origin, and quite highly decorative.

_Konieh_ rugs are of great weight and resemble Ouchaks. They usually have a plain centre, and when there are panels these are also of one shade. Being firm and strong they are very durable.

_Kulah_ prayer rugs of ancient make are most interesting and valuable. They are about the size of the old Ghiordes prayer rug, and have other points in common, which might be expected from the proximity of the towns. The Kulah rug, however, instead of the solid centre of its neighbor, is apt to have its field ornamented with small floral designs. The colors most prominent are a yellowish-brown, a blue, or a soft red. Green and white are seen at times. There are many narrow stripes as borders, often alternating in dark and light colors, and these are beautifully ornamented with floral effects in minute designs. The niche of the prayer rug is of medium height, often with serrated sides.

_Kurdistan_ (the Turkish portion) rugs are woven by the women in odd moments, and one of the ways a girl gains distinction among her associates is by the skill she displays in rug-weaving. As the wool is taken from the flocks that are kept near home, and is spun and dyed there, and as the time consumed in the weaving is not counted, each rug is considered clear gain. In fact, the Kurdish women do not make their rugs entirely for the market, but for their own entertainment and use. Kurdish rugs are very durable, and they are much prized in Turkey; but they do not sell readily in America because of the lack of that harmony of color which our taste demands. Their coloring is often too bright and varied to attract us. An Armenian clergyman said to me recently: "I find Americans more devoted to harmony than to anything else. I have in my house one of the finest of Kurdish rugs, but I could never sell it in this country, should I wish. An American looks at it and says, 'What hideous colors!' and I doubt if I could even give it away, although it would be considered a superior rug in Turkey."

_Kutahia_ sends out Anatolian rugs of goat's hair and wool. Some improvement has been noticed in the rugs recently.

_Ladik_ prayer rugs were made in the ancient city of Laodicea. They are among the finest rugs of old workmanship. The field is of a solid color, often a rich wine-red. The niche is serrated on the inside to the apex, which is enclosed by straight lines. On the outside of the niche one often sees the hook design, extending into the upper field, which in its turn is frequently ornamented with lancet-shaped leaves and floral forms. The Rhodian lily sometimes plays a part in the border design. White, red, blue, a light tan, and green, with an occasional touch of violet, are used. The webbing is red, and extends about an inch and a half, when a narrow fringe finishes the ends.

_Meles_ (Melhaz) rugs of modern make are of coarse texture, and brilliant in fugitive dyes of red, yellow, blue, and green. They find a market at Milassa. The modern prayer rug does not compare favorably in any way with the antique. The texture of the ancient rug is thin, but with a wealth of coloring and blending of hues, as beautiful as rare. Sometimes, too, the Ghiordes panel is seen above the niche. A good deal of black was used in the old rugs, but, as is usual in antiques, it has gradually disappeared with age. Violet, too, is a color that was sometimes used with great effect in old rugs.

_Mohair_ rugs are made of the soft, silky hair of the Angora goat; but though beautiful, they are not durable, as experiments tried at Akhissar and Kulah have shown.

_Mosul_ rugs are strong and rich in colorings of blue, yellow, green, and red. The designs are rather striking, and with their silky softness these rugs are generally desirable. The best are made of camel's hair, including the outer border, but occasionally they are made partly of goat's hair. They are now made in several Turkish provinces, and are often wrongly called Persian rugs.