EAST TURKESTAN, SECOND HALF 18TH CENTURY

While obviously similar to the preceding lot, the present carpet has an unusual feature in the quartered medallions forming spandrels in the field. The design is however dominated by the well drawn version of one of the most sought-after and archaic of all Khotan border designs. There are two theories about the origin of this design. One has it that it comes from the Chinese single cloud design which has been worked into a reciprocal pattern (Bidder, Hans: Carpets from East Turkestan, Tübingen, 1964, pp.64-5). An alternative is that it is an adaptation of the prehistoric twin-horn motif, and represents the earthy dark counter-cloud. This (kotchak) design is one that is frequently used in Turkman carpets and jewellery, also symbolising male virility, originally deriving from the horns of a ram. The reciprocal nature of the design means that these are not necessarily mutually exclusive; each one can represent each half of the form.