Lot Essay
There is one other published carpet which must come from the same place of origin as the present fragment, formerly in the collection of Mortimer Schiff (Pope, A.U.: A Survey of Persian Art, Oxford, 1938, pl.1240). Both share the same polychrome panelled field with many of the same field colours. While the Schiff carpet panels are almost pure lozenges, the present example has the star-and-cross lattice which may well derive originally from mediaeval tile revetments. The drawing of the plants within the panels is similar, although there is less variety in the Schiff carpet. All the floral sprays face in the same direction in both carpets, while the inner guard stripe is identical in colour and design.
Pope attributed the Schiff carpet to Joshaqan Qali, an attribution which today is not accepted. The correct attribution of both carpets however is not without its problems. They have the strong colours and powerful drawing associated by many with products of Khorassan in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, but a minor guard stripe which is only seen on Indian and central Persian carpets. A seventeenth century precursor of the design can be seen in the von Hirsch lattice carpet (Il Tapetto Orientale dal XV al XVIII secolo, exhibition catalogue, London, 1981, no.24, pp.43-44, ill.p.86; this reference gives the location of the four fragments from the carpet). There the design is far closer to the supple drawing seen in miniatures than the angular form seen here. Michael Franses attributes the von Hirsch carpet to North East Persia although Spuhler in his cataloguing of the Keir Collection fragment (Robinson, B.W. et al.: Islamic Art in the Keir Collection, London, 1988, no.T28, pp.78-80) says that, beyond citing 'Persia', he is "unable to suggest a plausible place of manufacture".
There is a possibility this carpet was made in India. The similarity of the angular rendering of the floral sprays between this and lot ***[C165] in this sale is obvious. Furthermore the drawing of the border of the Schiff carpet is almost identical with that of the Berlin fragmentary carpet mentioned in the note to that lot. However the reasoning in the previous paragraph, coupled with the similarity of the design to the octagonal carpet from the Satterwhite estate (Christie's London, 15 October 1987, lot 133), attributed by Erdmann (Kurt: Seven Hundred Years of Oriental Carpets, London, 1970, pp.200-201, pl.258) to Southern Persia, but more recently ascribed to Khorassan (Willborg, J.P.: 1980-1990, "Ten Years" Jubilee Exhibition, Stockholm, 1990, no.1), partly on the basis of the jufti knotting shared with the present fragment, makes the North East Persian attribution the most probable.
Pope attributed the Schiff carpet to Joshaqan Qali, an attribution which today is not accepted. The correct attribution of both carpets however is not without its problems. They have the strong colours and powerful drawing associated by many with products of Khorassan in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, but a minor guard stripe which is only seen on Indian and central Persian carpets. A seventeenth century precursor of the design can be seen in the von Hirsch lattice carpet (Il Tapetto Orientale dal XV al XVIII secolo, exhibition catalogue, London, 1981, no.24, pp.43-44, ill.p.86; this reference gives the location of the four fragments from the carpet). There the design is far closer to the supple drawing seen in miniatures than the angular form seen here. Michael Franses attributes the von Hirsch carpet to North East Persia although Spuhler in his cataloguing of the Keir Collection fragment (Robinson, B.W. et al.: Islamic Art in the Keir Collection, London, 1988, no.T28, pp.78-80) says that, beyond citing 'Persia', he is "unable to suggest a plausible place of manufacture".
There is a possibility this carpet was made in India. The similarity of the angular rendering of the floral sprays between this and lot ***[C165] in this sale is obvious. Furthermore the drawing of the border of the Schiff carpet is almost identical with that of the Berlin fragmentary carpet mentioned in the note to that lot. However the reasoning in the previous paragraph, coupled with the similarity of the design to the octagonal carpet from the Satterwhite estate (Christie's London, 15 October 1987, lot 133), attributed by Erdmann (Kurt: Seven Hundred Years of Oriental Carpets, London, 1970, pp.200-201, pl.258) to Southern Persia, but more recently ascribed to Khorassan (Willborg, J.P.: 1980-1990, "Ten Years" Jubilee Exhibition, Stockholm, 1990, no.1), partly on the basis of the jufti knotting shared with the present fragment, makes the North East Persian attribution the most probable.