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1 Cultural Heritage of the Persian Carpet

2 Copyright The Iranian Association 222 King Street Hammersmith London W6 0RA Copyright The Iranian Association action graphics ltd design I print I web Design and Printed by Action Graphics Ltd enq@actiongraphics.co.uk The Iranian Association asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

3 Cultural Heritage of the Persian Carpet The Iranian Association

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5 Contents Page CONTENTS The Story of the Persian Carpet 1 A Timeline of the Persian Carpet 3 The Interviews: History of the Persian Carpet 7 Map of Carpet Regions in Iran 8 The Interviews: The Ardabil Carpet 9 William Morris and the Persian Carpet 11 The Interviews: William Morris 12 The Interviews: Design and Motif 14 Essie Carpet Showroom: A Collection 18 Freud s Interest in Persian and Oriental Carpets 29 The Iranian Perspective on the Qashqai Carpet 30 The Interviews: Psychological Perspective 32 The Interviews: British Manufacturers 34 Gabbeh: Interview with Mohsen Makhmalbaf 36 The Interviews: Persian Carpets and Other Art Forms 38 The Interviews: Persian Carpets in the Western Eye 40 Gallery Yacou: A Collection 42 Personal Stories: Dorothy Armstrong 46 The Interviews: Memories and Stories 52 The Interviews: Rituals 57 Handmade Carpets in a Persian Restaurant: 58 Interview with Ali Rahimi Ealing Rug Gallery: A Collection 60 The Interviews: Physical Preservation of Carpets 69 The Interviews: Persian Carpet Businesses in the UK 71 Mostafa Carpet Showroom: A Collection 73 A Recommended Reading List 79 Glossary 81 Acknowledgments 96

6 THE STORY OF THE PERSIAN CARPET The Story of the Persian Carpet The Cultural Heritage of the Persian Carpet Project was launched in October Its goal was to reveal and preserve the reminiscences and stories about the cultural, historical and personal perspectives of Persian handmade carpets as an integral part of British culture. Through research and interviews with heritage specialists, historians, artists, carpet designers, traders and Persian carpet owners, the project explores themes such as: The history of Persian carpet William Morris s and Freud s interests in handmade carpets The role of British firms in the development of Persian carpet The Persian carpet s place in Iranian culture, identity and art Handmade carpets in Iranian homes and other venues Personal memories, stories, rituals and ceremonies. Historical records have shown that the Persians were one of the first carpet weavers of the ancient civilisations. The handmade carpet is deeply rooted in Iranian culture and holds a special place in the community. Many Iranians have grown up on these carpets; they would play on them as children. There is an emotional tie to the Persian carpet it is almost a member of the family. Persian handmade carpets have been used worldwide to decorate homes, palaces, shrines and museums. The carpets decorate the homes of many Iranians in Britain and are displayed in British heritage institutions such as the Victoria & Albert (V&A) and Freud museums in London. The handmade carpet is more than a mere floor covering in Iranian culture; for many people, the term Persian carpet has been synonymous with beauty, mystery and magic. Since the sixteenth century, the Persian carpet was a status symbol in England and Europe. Because of this, British firms have been involved in the Persian handmade carpet business for centuries. Ziegler & Co was established in Iran in 1880s and the Oriental Carpet Manufacturer (OCM) operated in Iran from 1911 onwards. 1

7 William Morris, a nineteenth century social pioneer and leading member of the Arts and Crafts Movement, admired the designs of Persian carpets and believed them to be the greatest ever made. It was Morris who persuaded the V&A Museum to purchase the world-famous, sixteenth century Ardabil carpet in For Iranians living in and around London, preserving their stories and cultural heritage is of the utmost importance, especially in a time where the term Iranian is often tarred within the media. Through collaboration with British Heritage institutions, this project has promoted good cross-cultural relations; raising the profile of a community that is too often connected to politics in Iran, rather than as citizens who live happily in British society. THE STORY OF THE PERSIAN CARPET 2

8 A TIMELINE OF THE PERSIAN CARPET A Timeline of the Persian Carpet The history of Persian carpet stretches back for millennia giving it a special place in Iranian culture. 500 BC: Pazyryk Carpet The oldest knotted carpet was found in 1949 in the Pazyryk Valley, Siberia, by a team of Russian Archaeologists headed up by Sergei Rudenko. Mariya Pavlovna Zanvitukhina, curator of Siberian Antiquities at the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, states that the carpet, is a tribute to the workmanship of its Iranian weavers. (UNESCO Courier). The Pazyryk carpet is currently exhibited in the Hermitage Museum. AD : The Spring of Khosrow The Spring of Khosrow carpet, or the Winter of Khosrow carpet as it is also sometimes known, is considered to be one of the most magnificent carpets ever made. The carpet was made for the Sasanian King Khosrow s Ctesiphon palace. It was given the name Spring of Khosrow as it depicted the splendour of flowering spring using silk, gold, jewels and silver. The carpet was then used as an example for later garden carpets. When Ctesiphon was besieged and captured in 637 AD the carpet was cut up and distributed among the conquering troops : Safavid Dynasty and Ardabil Carpet This was the high point in Persian carpet design and manufacture. It was the result of a unique conjunction of royal patronage and the influence of court designers at all levels of artistic production. The Ardabil carpet (1542), exhibited in the V&A Museum, was made in this era for the Shrine of the founder of the Safavid dynasty, Sheikh Safi al-din Ardabili. The Ardabil carpet is the oldest dated carpet in existence. 3

9 : Qajar Dynasty There were dramatic changes in the traditional organisation of the Persian carpet industry during the Qajar period. Particularly significant was the substantial increase both in the number of looms and the volume of carpet exports. Foreign companies launched their businesses in Iran during this era. The Ziegler enterprise based in Soltanabad (now Arak) and the Oriental Carpet Manufacturer (OCM) are the earliest known companies to manufacture rugs in Persia : William Morris Morris looked to the East, and especially to Iran, for inspiration in his famous carpet designs. He once said, To us pattern-designers, Persia has become a holy land, for there in the process of time our art was perfected'. William Morris advised the V&A Museum to purchase the renowned Ardabil carpet. He reported it as a singular perfection, logically and consistently beautiful. The Museum acquired the carpet for 2,000 in March William Morris s Kerman carpet is now also exhibited in the museum. A TIMELINE OF THE PERSIAN CARPET 1880s 1970s: Major British Manufacturers in Iran Ziegler & Co, a Manchester-based producer and distributor of Persian carpets, were established in Arak in 1880s. Ziegler s production changed traditional palettes, dimensions, and designs to the specifications of western retailers. The Oriental Carpet Manufacturer (OCM), a London-based company, was involved in the production of Oriental carpets in Hamedan from 1911 onwards. Arthur Cecil Edwards, an OCM manager, wrote an informative book on Persian Carpets, which is still in print today. 1880s: Freud's Persian Carpet Sigmund Freud ( ), the father of Psychoanalysis, covered his famous couch with a Persian carpet. The Iranian Qashqai carpet transformed the plain and simple couch into a fitting landscape for the retelling of dreams. The Qashqai tribe territories range through the west of Iran (Province of Fars). Freud may have obtained it from his brother-in-law, Moritz Freud, who was an importer of carpets. The couch is currently on display in the Freud Museum, London. 4

10 A TIMELINE OF THE PERSIAN CARPET : Pahlavi Dynasty During World War I, Persian carpets were in decline. Reza Shah Pahlavi came in to power in 1925, and with it came the revitalisation of the Persian carpet industry. Arthur Upham Pope ( ), an American archaeologist and historian of Persian art, went to Iran as an art advisor in He organised a number of exhibitions on Persian art and carpets to raise awareness of Iranian art and culture internationally. Iranian showrooms were established in Britain and Europe during the reign of Mohammad Reza Shah, the second Pahlavi King. 1997: Persian Carpets in the UN Iran gifted a handmade carpet to the United Nations Headquarters in New York. The carpet was produced by the well-known Iranian carpet producer, Seirafian, based in Esfahan, central Iran. A famous verse from the Oneness of Mankind by prominent Iranian poet, Sa'di has been woven into it in gold: Human beings are members of a whole, In creation of one essence and soul. If one member is afflicted with pain, Other members uneasy will remain. If you have no sympathy for human pain, The name of human you cannot retain. 2007: The World s Largest Carpet In 2007, the Iranian government unveiled what is thought to be the largest handmade carpet in the world. The carpet is 5,625 square metres and is around the size of a football field. It took over a year and a half and 1,200 weavers to make the carpet. The carpet was made to cover the Sheikh Zayed mosque in the United Arab Emirates. Emirati officials commissioned Iran's state-owned rug manufacturer to create the piece for the central prayer hall of the giant mosque. 2010: UNESCO Recognition of the Cultural Heritage Traditional skills of carpet weaving in Fars and Kashan were inscribed in 2010 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. 5

11 2012: UNESCO Recognition of the Cultural Heritage Qalishuyan ritual of Mashad-e Ardehal in Kashan was inscribed in 2012 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Qalishuyan ritual is practised in Iran to honour the memory of Soltan Ali, a holy figure among the people of Kashan and Fin. According to legend, he was martyred, and his body found and carried in a carpet to a stream, where it was washed and buried. Today, the Soltan Ali Mausoleum is the site of a ritual, where a carpet is washed in the holy stream among a huge gathering. It takes place on the nearest Friday to the seventeenth day of the month of Mehr, according to the solar-agricultural calendar. In the morning, locals gather at the mausoleum to sprinkle rosewater on the carpet. Having completed the wrapping rituals, they deliver it to the people of Fin, who rinse the carpet in running water and sprinkle rosewater drops with neatly cut and beautifully decorated wooden sticks. A TIMELINE OF THE PERSIAN CARPET The carpet is then returned to the mausoleum. The local community maintains oral transmission of the procedures, but also recreate the tradition by adding new and festive elements. 2013: The Most Expensive Carpet The most expensive carpet ever made is a Persian Vase Carpet, sold for nearly $34 million at a Sotheby s auction in New York City. According to Sotheby s, the rug is a sickle-leaf, vine scroll and palmette vase -technique carpet, probably of Kerman origin, and had belonged to the Clark Collection. The sale of this magnificent Kerman marks something of a watershed moment, as antique rugs become an ever more desirable commodity. This moment gave the Persian carpet a very firm footing in the art world. 6

12 HISTORY OF THE PERSIAN CARPET History of the Persian Carpet The Interviews The oldest oriental carpet, or the oldest handmade carpet, is probably produced in Persian Empire, around about 600 BC around 2700 years ago. Ben Evans We have a number of ancient carpet fragments, the oldest is the Pazyryk now in the Hermitage Museum. It was found in Siberia but thought to be of Persian origin. Dorothy Armstrong To our best knowledge, the oldest carpet in existence is a carpet known as Pazyryk. Pazyryk, is an area in the frozen Siberian desert. It was found when uncovering a grave of one of the commanders of the Scythian. They found items including a carpet with all the patterns of the Achaemenid and pre-achaemenid period on it. This is the oldest carpet that has remained intact today. It is held in the Hermitage Museum. So, we can say we possess the knowledge of 3000 years worth of history of Persian carpets. Mahmood Kavir There is a written account by the ninth century historian, Al-Tabari, about the carpet of Khosrow the Empire Khosrow,. It was seized in the seventh century as the Arabs came into Persia and was cut up and distributed amongst the troops. Al-Tabari says The border was a magnificent flower bed of blue, red, white, yellow and green stones. In the background, the colour of the earth was imitated with gold. Clear stones like crystal gave the illusion of water, the plants were in silk, and the fruits were formed from coloured stones. Dorothy Armstrong The Qajar era was the time when many European companies started to work in Iran. One of the first was a silk production and exportation company in Gilan. Producing silk had a considerable influence on carpet weaving, especially in the workshops in Haris, one of the villages of Tabriz province. Azadeh Tavousian 7

13 Map of Carpet Regions in Iran The carpets manufactured in Iran are often named after the city or area where they are made, for example Kerman, Hamadan, Tabriz, Mashhad, Bidjar and Kashan. The carpets can also be named after different ethnic groups like the Qashqai. MAP OF CARPET REGIONS IN IRAN Main Carpet Regions in Iran 8

14 THE ARDABIL CARPET The Ardabil Carpet The Interviews The V&A Museum bought the Ardabil Carpet from a company in London called Vincent and Robinsons. Vincent and Robinsons specialises in Middle Eastern textiles, as well as Asian objects. They had acquired it from an importer called Ziegler, a trading company who imported and exported into Britain from across the Middle East. They had many branches in Iran, their biggest in the city of Tabriz. Moya Carey There s an exceptional collection that the Iranian community in London should go and see at least once a year. And it is the Ardabil Carpet in the V&A Museum. It is, without a doubt, the most beautiful carpet in the world and it s right here in London. Ben Evans When the Ardabil Carpet came up for sale, William Morris felt it was one of the most famous and beautiful carpets in the whole world, and that the V&A Museum really had to have it. He believed the fact that it is dated is a real importance, not merely from a commercial perspective, but because it gives us insight into the history of it and gives a standard whereby one may test the excellence of the palmy days of Persian design. Helen Elleston The Ardabil Carpet in the V&A Museum was actually one of two, both of which were damaged. They were repaired and restored to suit the art market of the day. The market preferred whole carpets to sections of damaged ones. So, there s a certain amount of cannibalisation that went on between the two carpets. The borders were removed from one carpet to complete the other. Moya Carey 9

15 The Ardabil Carpet was actually last conserved in It was given major treatment because, at that time, they were going to have a new Islamic gallery. They were trying to put loads and loads of things into the exhibition. So, they knew it was going to have to go vertically along the wall. Frances Hartoq THE ARDABIL CARPET When the Ardabil Carpet came to the V&A it was discussed as a unique object, a perfect and flawless object. As we know now the carpet, in fact, contains fragments from the twin-carpet, which is now in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. So, we know that it s not 100 percent intact. It s a 500 year old object. Moya Carey Morris believed the South Kensington Museum must certainly buy the carpet at the price it was mentioned. He said no reasonable man, who understands the subject, would think it s an extravagant price for such a remarkable work of art. He believed that the Ardabil Carpet was the finest Eastern carpet ever seen. He gave the carpet his full backing and, of course, they listened to him and went on to buy it. And now it s one of the key treasures in the entire museum. Helen Elleston The Ardabil Carpet twins are no ordinary carpets. They are extreme. They are dated, they are part of, presumably, a royal commission for a Safavid building and they are terribly important for the history of design, as well as Iranian art history. Moya Carey If you go beyond the physical repairs and look at the design, you ll see an absolutely exceptional execution of Safavid court design. This is a design which rotates, it has a central medallion and that medallion has radiating shapes growing from it. It also has corner units which repeat the central medallion. Moya Carey 10

16 WILLIAM MORRIS AND THE PERSIAN CARPET William Morris and the Persian Carpet It s a fascinating coincidence that, over three decades ago, the Iranian Association was established in Hammersmith where William Morris had once lived and produced his first handmade carpets after studying Persian design. Morris is a symbol of true multiculturalism within the UK, especially at a time of anxiety about the arrival of immigrants and refugees. He did not look down on people from other parts of the world. Instead, he acknowledged their contributions to human civilisation and learned about their arts, adapting them to his own artistic work. William Morris believed Persian carpets were the greatest ever made and advised the V&A Museum to purchase the Ardabil carpet. Interestingly, Morris also handilluminated the manuscripts of Edward Fitzgerald s translation of The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, a collection of verses by the eleventh century Persian poet and mathematician. Morris did not want art for the few, privileged classes. He would be delighted to see that almost all Iranians from different social classes love to decorate their rooms with Persian handmade carpets all with different designs, patterns and colours. Many Iranians are also involved at different stages of Persian handmade rug production, including the weaving of the carpet itself. Though working conditions are far from ideal for many of them. Thus, Morris s wholehearted dedication to social justice can provide an inspiration for Iranians in improving the conditions of people working in the handmade carpet production. William Morris was an advocate of well-made, handcrafted goods instead of the mass-produced, poor quality, machine-made items we so often see today. In this light, Morris would be pleased to see that his influence lives on in Persian carpets manufacture many of which are still handmade 11

17 William Morris The Interviews William Morris had an official role within the V&A Museum, which was then called the South Kensington Museum. As an art adviser, he advised the museum on what to buy. He became aware of the Ardabil Carpet, which was being sold by a carpet dealer in Manchester and advised them to buy it. Helen Elleston WILLIAM MORRIS He donated money to South Kensington Museum himself and got other people to donate so the museum could afford to buy the Ardabil Carpet for He described it a singular perfection. It is now one of the star pieces of the museum s collection. Rowan Bain It didn t matter where an item came from, if it was beautiful, carefully put together and handmade, Morris would look at that item for inspiration for his own designs. Morris especially admired Persian carpets; it made sense for him to be inspired by historic textile design. Helen Elleston Morris looked to Persian carpets for inspiration in his own pattern designs. He would look at other cultures as well as the past for inspiration. Morris would have looked at medieval designs, as well as design from Persia in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Rowan Bain You can see a real influence from Persian carpet design in William Morris s own work. As he learnt more about Persian carpet designs, his designs for his carpets became much more fluid and included many more decorative flowers and sophisticated shapes. Rowan Bain 12

18 WILLIAM MORRIS Morris owned several Persian carpets. He had many different homes and many of these were decorated with Persian carpets and rugs. The most famous of all, the Kerman Vase Carpet, was kept in Hammersmith at Kelsmscott House. Helen Elleston I think Morris would appreciate that people still decorate their homes with these beautiful carpets. He was very influenced by the skills and the techniques used in hand knotting and he admired the Persian technique more than any others. Helen Elleston When he looked at flowers and leaf shapes in Persian design, he found the endless possibilities for how you can adapt them. So, by learning from nature, he used different forms and combinations of leaves and flowers to make a huge number of very different designs and it makes his pattern much more interesting because he can use different forms together and they can be endlessly different. Rowan Bain Morris really believed people should live their lives to the full. He felt that people should have a good quality of life, with beautiful things surrounding them. He did his best to change society for the better. Helen Elleston 13

19 Design and Motif The Interviews The most important thing to understand about Persian carpets is that there are two main types: carpets that have been made to sell and carpets that have been made for use. Surprisingly, across Iran, the carpets made to be sold are made in villages and towns. The carpets made mostly by nomad tribes are the ones that are created to be used by the weaver or weaver s family and which will never be sold. It applies to all the tribes; it applies to the Shahsavan in the north, to the Qashqai in the south. It applies to the Balochi in the east and to Kurds and Bakhtiari in the west. Jim Ford DESIGN AND MOTIF For a very long time, the assumption was that floral carpet tradition began with the Safavids. So, carpets like the Schwarzenberg, the Rothschild hunting carpets, and the Ardabil were the first, or part of the earliest generation of floral carpets. However, scholars have pondered this for many years. It seems strange to have had two millennia of geometric carpets. And then suddenly, in the Safavid era in the sixteenth century, there is an influx of not just floral carpets, but floral carpets that have been unsurpassed ever since. There s always been a kind of nagging doubt about whether those world-famous Safavid floral carpets and hunting carpets really were the first generation. But no evidence has been found to suggest otherwise. Dorothy Armstrong We have such a wide range of carpet designs in Iranian history with so much sophistication in its production, so much diversity. We have geometry. We have order. We have figures, animals, flowers, medallions and circles and so on. We see floral themes at different periods of time and each are drawn in a slightly different way. Moya Carey 14

20 DESIGN AND MOTIF There are lots of different Bakhtiari carpets. The classic ones are garden carpets. And they are like Persian gardens, which I think are really misunderstood by many people in the west. So Persian gardens are going to be like squares so that you can get water into these different things and there s going to be trees in them. Caroline Mawer The Arabesque motif is, in fact, a simplified piece of a palm tree or flowers. Designs repeat parts of the leaf or rose flowers. But this leads to the question of how the Arabesque could belong to the Arabs or Iranians when the motif was seen before they came into power? These designs were in existence before and so, it is safe to say these designs were developed in Persia. When the Arab empire took over, they were inspired by the original designs and created the Arabesque. There are also European versions of Arabesque as well. Fariba Nazemi The way that a carpet was made originally is almost indistinguishable from the way that a carpet is made today. Where so many things have changed throughout history, here lies one fundamental expression of a national or cultural identity that is the same. The technique remains the same and the carpet that you have in your house today, that is made in Iran today, is made exactly the same way as a carpet would have been made 2,500 years ago. Ben Evans In Safavid carpets from the sixteenth century, for example, you will see a repertoire of lotuses with lotus leaves, beautiful flowers on top and smaller cherry blossom flowers. There is a really lovely combination of both stylised flowers. Then, if you look at something like the Kerman Vase carpets, it s like you re looking into a garden. You have separate plants with separate identifiable flowers and recognisable forms, many of which are shown as growing plants. They are growing out of little clumps of earth or a bulb maybe you really see them as living plants. Moya Carey 15

21 We have different patterns and different motifs such as Herati, Botteh, Paisley (Botte Jegheh), Gol, Shah Abbasi and Golhaye Khatai. Usually, these designs are in the middle of the carpet, the weavers pay more attention to the middle of the carpet to make it separate from the borders. Fariba Nazemi DESIGN AND MOTIF There are different stories about the origin of Paisley. Some people call it an eye drop, or another version of a tear drop. They might say it s a leaf but the top part is more curved. Or they say that it s a flame, appearing since the Zoroastrian period, when they worshipped fire. Fariba Nazemi William Morris was very much inspired by a Persian carpets that have a central medallion. You can see these in quite a lot of his carpet designs. He really loved the symmetry in Persian carpets and the contrast in the different colours and I think you can see that throughout his carpet designs. Helen Elleston They are many more techniques within the category we call Persian carpets than any other culture or country producing carpets. It seems to me that the Persian carpet weavers were constantly pushing the boundaries of design and production. They were trying to experiment to see what would work. Jennifer Wearden If we look at old Iranian carpets, they have seven or eight borders. There are four corner pieces, Lachaks, in the four corners of the carpet as well as a medallion in the centre, which is rounded. What is this? Why does it have seven or eight borders and why do the four corners contain gardens full of birds and flora? What is that in the centre? This is the image that we have of heaven, or the view we have in our dreams of heaven. This image is what s brought into the carpet. Or maybe it s the opposite, it s the carpet that brings the image to our dreams. Mahmood Kavir 16

22 DESIGN AND MOTIF Morris s motifs appear in the Persian carpets that he studied. His designs started with quite a rigid structure with large leaves that make the big shapes. Then, after he studied Persian carpet design, you can see his backgrounds becoming much freer with more space between the shapes and with much finer patterns. He was influenced by the leaf shapes found in Persian carpets and repeating floral patterns that flow much more than his previous attempted carpet design. Rowan Bain 17

23 Essie Carpet Showroom: A Collection Essie Sakhai is one of Europe s foremost carpet dealers. Born in Iran to a family with a long history of dealing in Persian carpets, it was inevitable that Essie Sakhai should become a respected expert on Oriental and Persian carpets, gaining much of his great knowledge from his father, Benayahoo Sakhai. Essie Carpets is located on the corner of Albemarle Street and Piccadilly in London s Mayfair, carrying on the family tradition started in the eighteenth century. Essie is a true enthusiast and hopes that, through his extensive lectures, interviews and writing (his books include The Fabric of Life, The Story of Carpets, and The Buyer s Guide) to share his knowledge and passion for carpets with a wider audience. ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Bakhtiari Carpet 300 x 210 cm Wool 18

24 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Tehran Carpet 300 x 204 cm Wool Tabriz Carpet 182 x 137 cm Wool Pile 19

25 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Qom Carpet 208 x 134 cm Wool Pile Kashan Carpet 210 x 130 cm Wool Pile 20

26 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Kerman Carpet 297 x 217 cm Wool Pile Tabriz Carpet 207 x 135 cm Pure Silk 21

27 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Esfahan Carpet 200 x 139 cm Wool Kashan Carpet 200 x 128 cm Wool 22

28 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Esfahan Carpet 263 x 158 cm Silk - Wool Sarouk Carpet 200 x 129 cm Wool Pile 23

29 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Kerman Carpet 200 x 145 cm Wool Pile 24

30 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Kashan Carpet 207 x 130 cm Wool 25

31 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Ravar Kerman Carpet 213 x 137 cm Wool Pile 26

32 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Ravar Kerman Carpet 140 x 100 cm Silk - Wool 27

33 ESSIE CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Kashan Carpet 203 x 130 cm Pure Silk 28

34 FREUD S INTEREST IN PERSIAN AND ORIENTAL CARPETS Freud s Interest in Persian and Oriental Carpets Western demand for handmade carpets increased dramatically between 1875 and There was a new focus on pre-modern society among anthropologists and world fairs featured exhibitions of exotic and native cultural practices. The desire for handmade carpets in the West also expressed a dissatisfaction with industrialised western life among some intellectuals. Psychologists such as Sigmund Freud became fascinated by primitive mentality. Furthermore, artists such as Gauguin and Picasso used so-called primitive images to inspire their work. Many psychoanalysts were inspired by Freud and displayed tribal style carpets in their offices and waiting rooms. He surrounded his collection of antiquities with carpets and described his collecting passion as an addiction second in intensity only to his dependence on nicotine. Freud s art collecting activities also expressed a general interest in Oriental carpets at the end of the nineteenth century; he may have believed his Qashqai and Oriental carpets came from cultures that were relatively untouched by modernity. The artefacts in his consulting room reflected his interest in uncovering the primal structures of the mind free from modern life. Freud Museum, London 29

35 The Iranian Perspective on the Qashqai Carpet In February 2018, the poster with the project s findings was displayed in the Freud Museum in Hampstead in a prominent position in the study room. THE IRANIAN PERSPECTIVE ON THE QASHQAI CARPET Freud Museum, the Study Qashqai Carpet: Colours and Shapes On top of the psychoanalytic couch is one of Freud s Qashqai carpets. It was woven in the late 19th century by one of the tribes of the Qashqai Confederacy whose territories range through the west of Iran. Qashqai carpets are influenced by their surroundings; the dyes are made from flowers and plants. The carpets depict shapes inspired by scenery, animals and flowers in the nomads habitat or nearby villages and cities. 30

36 THE IRANIAN PERSPECTIVE ON THE QASHQAI CARPET How we view the Freud s Qashqai Carpet At first glance, the Qashqai rug seems ordinary to us as these rugs are common in Iran, but it has many layers. The patterns on the rug make us think beyond the functional and decorative qualities of the carpet and explore the psychological perspectives of tribal life. Qashqai rugs form part of dowry for desired marriages, commemorate special events or reminisce loved relatives. Freud s Couch, Qashqai Rug and Childhood memories On a personal note as Iranians, seeing Freud s couch and Qashqai carpet reminds us of our childhood summertime memories of sitting on beds covered with Persian rugs, being in the garden framed by flowerbeds with heavenly scents, transcending to a world without boundaries where we could talk freely, listen to stories, make confessions or listen to the advice of our elders. Qashqai rug and Psychoanalysis Carpets and artefacts from other cultures surrounding Freud s consulting room inspired him in delving into the minds of his patients. The Qashqai rug, a prewedding present, celebrated a desire and union; Freud put it on the couch where the analysand would think about their desires and drives. 31

37 Psychological Perspective The Interviews Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, was a Austrian neurologist who moved to London in last year of his life. The most valuable things that he brought with him were his antiques and collection of carpets. One of the notable carpets in the collection is a Qashqai carpet which covered his couch. He believed a carpet on the ground hides mysteries beneath, like thoughts, fears and unspoken words. Yasaman Dehghani PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE The most famous carpet in Freud s collection is the carpet that covers the famous couch. That carpet was given to him as an engagement present by a cousin, Moritz. It gives you glimpse of the old Middle East before these very heavy national boundaries and occupations, that Moritz was a carpet dealer. He was a merchant, who travels throughout the land, trading in things like carpets and he brought it back. Marina Warner Freud was a tremendous collector of many, many different objects: books, statuettes, antiquities and carpets. He was a very great story teller himself, he was interested in people as the sum of their stories. He would have weaved them into stories about them. His diagnostic method was kind of archaeological; so, he would look at the story and try to see what was hidden underneath it. For him, the objects were tools to understand the strata in human imagination and human consciousness. Marina Warner Freud always referred to the rug as a Smyrna rug, from Smyrna, because that s possibly where Moritz bought it. But it isn t from Smyrna it is actually a Qashqai rug. The interesting thing about it is that it was acquired as an engagement present, which is quite a feminine characteristic. I mean, it was already a carpet that celebrated a union. Marina Warner 32

38 PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE In English we have a phrase Sweeping things under the carpet, which means hiding things or pretending it never happened. Of course, Freud was completely against hiding things, or sweeping things under the carpet. He felt this was very bad for people. This equalled repression and caused neurosis, or even paranoia. So, in his case, he lifts the carpet up and puts it on a sofa which, of course, is not very common. Marina Warner 33

39 British Manufacturers The Interviews Looking through the archives in Portugal, one notices that a lot of trade came through the Persian Gulf. This was the main colonial power at that time and we can see the first western records of sixteen century Persian carpets coming into Portugal. They were then sold to royal families and given as wedding presents etc., then coming out to western countries. Ben Evans BRITISH MANUFACTURERS Many European carpet companies started to work in Iran during the Qajar period ( ). Azadeh Tavousian Ziegler is a trading company, who traded goods into Britain from across the Middle East. It had many branches in Iran, their main base was in Tabriz. They also ordered and commissioned new carpets out of Sultanabad, which is modern Arak, and they had many business interests in Iran. Moya Carey Ziegler was an Anglo-Swiss company, whose headquarters were in Manchester, England. However, they wove their carpets in Iran. These were made for the western market. The designs were tailored for very fashionable and beautiful interiors. The scale of these designs are immediately recognisable, simply because they are incredibly extravagant. So, there is a great scale of the palmette, the colour palettes were softer and more tailored for western tastes. Louise Broadhurst Several British companies established in Izmir on the coast of Turkey competed to import carpets from the east into Britain. In 1908, the seven most powerful importers would collaborate, they joined together to create one company, and thus a monopoly. They started a company in London called the Oriental Carpet Manufacturers. Jim Ford 34

40 BRITISH MANUFACTURERS At the time, if you wanted to be a carpet man in Europe, you had to work for OCM; they were the biggest carpet organisation in Europe. It was started by an incredible character, called Brian Hofner. He employed a method of learning. It wasn t necessarily your academic background that was important, it was your aptitude to learn on the job. Bruce Lepere The OCM appointed a relative of one of the directors, called Cecil Edwards, to go to Iran in 1910 and discover what could be obtained from Persia. He spent 13 years in Persia creating manufacturing in Hamedan for example but above all visiting every village, every town, and every tribe to discover what was available. They began importing rugs in huge quantities. Jim Ford The OCM was founded in 1908 and Cecil Edwards first went to Iran in By the time I joined the company, he was already dead and his book, The Persian Carpet, first published in 1953 had just been republished. Looking at that book after 50 years, I can see just how well he understood Persian culture and how deeply he realised that the Persian carpet art is an essential element of Persian character. Jim Ford 35

41 Gabbeh Interview with Mohsen Makhmalbaf GABBEH Whenever I start making a movie, there are two important things to consider. The first is the theme or the goal of the piece and the second is the form and the style that I want to experience. I had heard from friends that tens of thousands of weavers of Gabbeh especially in the Fars province, were losing their jobs. No one was buying their goods anymore and many of the weavers were becoming factory workers. Those who lived in and amongst nature, who were used to a nomadic lifestyle were being forced to become city dwellers. And, in fact, the number of people whose lives were dependent on nature was decreasing. I was tempted to see the place for myself. I visited the Fars province, Lorestan and a part of Khuzestan nearly 150 villages and landscapes just to see if I could make a film about it. I wanted to do something that would help people keep their current jobs so they would not have to become poorer than they already were. My primary motivation was to help these people. When I arrived, I was surprised by how they created their rugs. I saw, for example, how the nomads would cut and spin sheep s wool, then they dye it with natural colours. How they would sit outside and weave what they saw. They did not work in enclosed rooms. Everything was natural: the material used to weave the carpets, as well as the colours used for the wool. The weavers didn t even use a sketch or guide to work from. For example, a birth might take place whilst a weaver worked and they would weave the event into the design. A goat might be killed and this too would be incorporated into the rug. The sun might set whilst the weaver worked, so they would weave that in too. Nature and everyday events in the weaver s nomadic life turned into the motifs of the carpet they were working on. It reminded me of the Impressionist and Fauvist movements years ago, the Impressionists took their canvases and models out of their enclosed rooms. They went into nature and modelled what happened before their eyes. But they were confronted with the inevitable the change in light. Imagine 36

42 GABBEH someone painting the sea; in the morning, the sea looked one colour. At noon, it was a different colour. As a result, they painted quickly and created a style in which reality was the most important factor. I felt that making this film would help me experience Impressionism in a cinematic way. We used natural light in all but one shot. We would sit for hours to get the right tone of light. And, for example, to achieve the same yellow colour as a canary, we continually took different shots only to discover it was not the same afterwards. We were hunting for colours. Or, like the nomads who weave in Gabbeh, we tried to write the events that took place into the script as they were happening. We hunted the right moment, the everyday details of life. And, most importantly, we hunted for the right light. The other style I mentioned was Fauvism, which came about after the Impressionist movement. One might say there are four elements in any painting: the theme, the form, the colour and the light. In Fauvism, the colour becomes so important that everything else disappears. The subject, the form, even the light is lost in comparison. And I saw Gabbeh as a kind of painting style that has been created by nomadic people. Those who have no claim on Impressionism or Fauvism, but whose designs follow the same beliefs. As a result, I found both things that I deemed necessary to making a film. It was for charity; to help a minority whose product was unmarketable. Fortunately, in Gabbeh, there was none of the tyranny that occurs in many weaving workshops such as those in Qom and Kashan. In my childhood, I had seen workshops with a handful of miserable workers sitting in dark rooms and weaving for the rich. They would work until they lost their eyesight, or suffer from chronic back pain. Gabbeh was not like this, the weaver s life was entangled with the nomadic lifestyle. The owner of the carpet was the carpet weaver themselves. In nomadic life, it is not possible to weave from morning till night. Weavers would work whenever possible. Because of this, some elements of Gabbeh would not be in harmony. It might be dyed in one way at the bottom, another way in the middle, and yet another way at the top. It is the story of a life lived in nature that brings it all together in the end. These were my motives that I made the film, Gabbeh. 37

43 Persian Carpets and Other Art Forms The Interviews When I began to paint, I wanted to bring something new to my work and create my own style. I wanted to portray a different side to Iranian culture and tradition. It was in this capacity that I looked to Iranian carpets for inspiration. The colours and the designs used in are represented in my own work. Nasim Nabavizadeh It s only when you consider the history of carpets, that you realise its richness and depth. I tried to reflect these themes in my own styles. Not to show you the style of an individual carpet, but the essence of Iranian carpets in general. I consider many themes seen in Iranian carpets, one of which is the use of the pomegranate, which I find fascinating. This symbol is one of abundance and fertility. Nasim Nabavizadeh MAP PERSIAN OF CARPETS REGIONS AND OTHER IN IRAN ART FORMS Gabbeh woven by Iranian nomads is almost like a painting. A primitive painting, a regional piece, one that very much resembles two modern styles in art history, Impressionism and Fauvism. We re talking about a kind of painting style that has been created by ordinary people, who have no claim on the two art movements, but whose designs follow the same beliefs. Mohsen Makhmalbaf When you look at Gabbeh rugs, no two are the same. They are like paintings in that there is truly only ever one of them. They are unique and the artist has a role in its creation. They create what they want, not something that the market imposes upon them to make. These rugs will later find a market, but it will be a market that pursues the taste of the artist, not one that imposes its tastes onto the artist. Mohsen Makhmalbaf 38

44 PERSIAN CARPETS AND OTHER ART FORMS When I began my research, I saw the highlights and shadows that are found in Iranian carpets. The detailing and the iconography really appealed to me. The paintings I make are completely inspired by these carpets. And though you may not obviously see the carpets in my work, you can be sure there is an essence of Iranian carpets found within them. Nasim Nabavizadeh We made a film (Gabbeh 1996) that also shows a style of painting produced by ordinary people with no pretensions, but their work is at the same level as two recognised modern painting styles that have changed the world of painting. Mohsen Makhmalbaf 39

45 Persian Carpets in the Western Eye The Interviews I believe cultural exchanges are hugely important to maintaining the peace and civility of the world. The more we can exchange ideas, artefacts, and beautiful things with one another, the more likely we are able to understand each other. To have a sense of the humanity of the other s culture and experiences. Marina Warner There s something about Persian carpets that is very suited to British tastes. There s something about the light and the love of colour so, in the revival period in the late nineteenth century, a lot of carpets were exported to Britain. MAP PERSIAN OF CARPETS REGIONS IN THE WESTERN IN IRAN EYE Ben Evans People in the west are drawn by a Persian rug s beauty; they are exotic because they are different to the kinds of high art and crafts that were developed in the West. The extreme focus on purity, balance, and abstract decoration was of enormous appeal to the west Dorothy Armstrong When we think of cars, we think of the Germans. When we think of whisky, we think of the Scots. When we think of perfume, we think of the French. But when we think of carpet it means exclusively Iran. Jim Ford The uniqueness of the Persian carpet, this millennia-old tradition, has been passed down not by physical recordings but by memory and emulation copying. It has expressed itself in so many different variants and is made in so many different social environments. Dorothy Armstrong 40

46 PERSIAN CARPETS IN THE WESTERN EYE Historically the English country house taste, British people like colour, they like strong colours, which was similar to what people liked in Iran. Strong reds and blues are fundamental in Persian carpet designs and it s these colours that characterised Persian carpets for a long time. Ben Evans We can see the popularity of cross cultural exchange, especially in Britain, from the sixteenth century onwards. There are portrait of kings and queens with carpets hung on the walls in the background. Many of which are Iranian carpets. I think that form of history is fascinating. Frances Hartoq Persian carpets are held in very high esteem by people; I think one of the reasons for this, aside from their beauty, is the craftsmanship that goes into making them. They are works of art and I think people really appreciate the history behind them. That s why you still see them on sale in shops like Liberty and other places in England. Helen Elleston When I first went to the museum, it was Persian carpets that I was attracted to. I then went over to the Turkish carpets because of the similarities in geometry, but the more I learned about the techniques behind Persian carpets, the more I admired them. Jennifer Wearden The first people who possessed Persian carpets were the extremely rich, normally royals. From those not so humble beginnings, Persian rugs had an air of mystery and exoticism. From the beginning there was a kind of eroticism that was associated with eastern carpets. Dorothy Armstrong The Iranian carpet has huge significance today in terms of its position not only as an art form, but also as a crafted object. People are extremely proud of what the carpet means to the world and that it has such a long history. Moya Carey I think many people s ideas of Persian carpets in England are associated with large, nineteenth century houses. British people see the patterns and designs as one of the finest examples of carpet art. If you ask someone to describe their idea of a historic rug, they will likely describe a Persian carpet. I think most people see it as a cultural legacy from that era. Rowan Bain 41

47 Gallery Yacou: A Collection Gallery Yacou is a family-run business based in north London. It has been in the family for over four generations and is currently run by Robin Yacoubian and his father, Ezekiel. Gallery Yacou specialises in antique, decorative and contemporary carpets. They work with a range of clients, including leading interior designers, architects, hoteliers, private clients and collectors. GALLERY YACOU: A COLLECTION Haris Carpet 395 x 300 cm 42

48 GALLERY YACOU: A COLLECTION Haris Carpet 544 x 341 cm Senneh Carpet 175 x 130 cm 43

49 GALLERY YACOU: A COLLECTION Khorasan Carpet 321 x 210 cm Bidjar Carpet 550 x 350 cm 44

50 GALLERY YACOU: A COLLECTION Tabriz Carpet 513 ₓ 330 cm 45

51 Personal Stories Dorothy Armstrong Aedh Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven Had I the heaven's embroidered cloths, Enwrought with golden and silver light, The blue and the dim and the dark cloths Of night and light and the half-light; I would spread the cloths under your feet: But I, being poor, have only my dreams; I have spread my dreams under your feet; Tread softly because you tread on my dreams. W.B. Yeats, 1899 PERSONAL STORIES One of the exciting aspects of Iranian Association s project on Iranian Carpets in Britain is that it explores the bonds between people and their rugs. Many have sent pictures of carpets that have special meaning to them and have shared personal stories about their rugs on the film that accompanies it. Rugs are not like the chairs and coffee tables, these are items of utility, however welldesigned. As the great Irish poet W.B. Yeats wrote in 1899, when we spread rugs under our feet, we also spread our dreams and our memories. Lily Yeats Embroidery Studio Yeats was not only using his poetic imagination when he created the metaphor of the cloths of heaven, he was also speaking from his personal experience. His sister, Lily Yeats, and her business partner, Evelyn Gleeson, established and ran an embroidery and weaving studio and were part of the Arts and Crafts circle led by William Morris. 46

52 PERSONAL STORIES When the poet s imagination offered the metaphor of the blue, silver and gold of heaven in all its subtle tones beneath his feet, he was evoking the real world of his sister s studio, and of the Oriental carpets that artistic groups in London and Dublin had by 1899 begun to prize and to dream over. Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Theodore Watts-Dunton in Cheyne Walk, London. By Henry Treffry Dunn, 1882, Photograph copyright National Portrait Gallery, London. This image of artist and poet, Rossetti, and the critic and poet, Watts-Dunton, discussing a paper, maybe a poem, which Rossetti holds in his hand. Their chairs are positioned so that the whole carpet is revealed in front of them, and their eyes as they discuss ideas and poetry are not on the paintings on the wall, but on the carpet beneath their feet. I imagine Rossetti and Watts Dunton s thoughts were running along the same lines to those expressed by William Morris at the end of the nineteenth century. Where a carpet, such as the fragment illustrated below, took their imagination to places they had never been, and could only dream of. 47

53 I praise the usefulness of the lives of the men who created these works of art. Men, whose names are long forgotten, but whose works we still wonder at today. They depicted, in their own way, how the flowers grew in the gardens of Damascus; how the hunt took place up on the plains of Kerman; or how the tulips grow amongst the grass in the mid-persian valley. And, most importantly, how their souls delighted in it all. PERSONAL STORIES Fragment of Safavid Hunting Carpet, sixteenth century, Iran. Silk/Wool. Acquired 1896 by the V&A Museum. Photograph V&A Museum. I imagine the people who have contributed to this project have stood, at one time or another, on their rug at home considered what it means to them. Thought of the artisans who made it, and imagined the memories of its journey to the place where it now stood. I am going to describe my own dreams and memories around three of my carpets, two Iranian and one Caucasian. 48

54 PERSONAL STORIES The Rescue Carpet My rescue carpet came to me as a rescue dog comes to its new family. A late nineteenth or early twentieth century Persian carpet of urban manufacture, it was made with a low-key colour palette of cream, pinks and browns. Though now, it s rather dirty and worn! It had lain in the house of a friend, who I ve known for over forty years. I was very familiar with it from visits to her house and didn t much like it I preferred tribal and village styles. My friend moved and had no space for it. Sotheby s, where she had originally bought it, told her that it was of no interest to them. Times had changed and ornate patterns, unless they were of exceptional quality, were out of fashion with buyers, said the dealer. The second auction house she tried, Gorringe s, told her they thought it would make 300. Affronted by the insult to the artisans who had made it, to the long journey it would have to make to Gorringe s in East Sussex, and to the taste of one of my oldest friends, I offered, as if it were a rescue dog, to give it a home. When it arrived, I managed to find a place for it on my crowded floors. Soon after, the room was rearranged to make space for the carpet. Furniture was moved, throws and cushions were changed and the rug became the focal point of the room. And finally, the rug has created an atmosphere that is highly-specific, a subtle sense of the cosmopolitan. It became my favourite place to read the weekend papers. The carpet was in some way worldly, it came from the sophisticated urban world nineteenth-century Iran. It created a worldly space, where it was very natural to read the world s news. 49

55 The Carpet That Sealed the Deal PERSONAL STORIES Several years ago, I decided to explore my long-standing interest in carpets in a more formal way, and followed the academic path of studying for an MA and, later, a Ph. D. I was about to give up my job and become a struggling student. And, in my opinion, a symbolic carpet purchase was required to seal the deal with myself so I got in touch with Bruce Lepere and his team at the rug room in Liberty s. Liberty s itself is part of the history and mythology of the Oriental carpet in Britain. The buyers for the Liberty rug-room have formed the taste of generations of ruglovers who have not had the experience of growing up amongst carpets and their makers in the Eurasian rug-weaving belt. With their guidance I bought the carpet that formed my contract with myself that I would spend part of my life thinking about these artefacts. Initially, I chose the rug for beauty, but later, the carpet expert, Jon Thompson, told me about its circumstances of production and cultural value. It was a Turkman carpet from the end of the nineteenth century or beginning of the twentieth century. It is roughly a metre square, with a fine short pile, and great precision of design. And it was made by nomadic people from the Iranian borders. This type of carpet is often made by the bride-to-be with the help of her motherin-law, as an item in the dowry that the bride will take to her husband s tent. The carpet was part of the contract the bride made with herself and her new family as she stepped into an unknown future. Similarly, it became my contract with myself that I would take a new path in life. The great designer, William Morris, looked at Safavid carpets and dreamt himself into the sixteenth century Persian hunt, amid verdant flowery valleys. I look at my Turkman dowry carpet and dream of the two women creating a carpet. Of a family, who weaved an image of continuity between generations. It lies on the floor in my bedroom, where I literally dream my dreams. 50

56 PERSONAL STORIES The Gift of a Carpet The final carpet is not Iranian. It was made somewhere quite recently in the Caucasus. It is flat woven, its colours are vivid, and its motifs simple and lively. It is a carpet that would live happily in a child s nursery, where a sleepless youngster could study its birds and flowers, and be cheered by its bright colours. In some ways, amongst the carpets I m privileged to live with, it is the most precious. It was given to me by my younger son who, on a hiking trip in the Caucasus, visited and drank tea with the merchants in the carpet bazaar in Baku. Photographs appeared on my phone showing the merchant s carpets, along with a request for money via Western Union. Two carpets arrived back in the UK, rolled up and attached to his rucksack, one for him, and one for me. Whenever we encounter a carpet, we must acknowledge the historically tragic nature of textiles, an industry which has often been a site of global exploitation of the poor and the vulnerable, but as we embed them in our lives, they take on a more benign role. So this modern carpet, which has only been in my house for a few months, already holds important memories for me. It, more than all the others, demonstrates that carpets are about shared values, about exploring and coming home, about generosity, about skill and knowledge, about respect for other places, people. 51

57 Memories and Stories The Interviews There is something about Persian carpets that is sticky to stories, it s almost magnetic. I think this is one of the reasons why the West loves them. I m entranced by the story that John Thompson told me about my own carpet that it was made by the bride and the mother-in-law before the wedding. They sat together and made a bond by weaving together. MAP MEMORIES OF CARPET AND STORIES REGIONS IN IRAN Dorothy Armstrong When I was buying carpets, I always insisted to see them in daylight, which is difficult in the bazaar in Tehran there isn t any daylight. I would say Of course there is daylight, it s on the roof!, and everything would have to be taken up onto the roof for me to look at. One of the great things about buying carpets in that way is that you realise how friendly the Persian people are. How willing they are to accommodate an Englishman with his strange ideas that he must see carpets on the roof before considering a purchase. Jim Ford I was born in Kerman in Since Kerman is a desert region, carpets have floral designs to make up for the lack of greenery. Shahrokh Vafadari The truth is that our culture is inherently linked to carpets. I believe it is the strongest passion of every Iranian: our older generations, our parents, and even us those that have been brought up on carpets since childhood. I believe no other form of art compares to carpet-weaving for Iranians. There are many priceless paintings drawn by famous (Iranian) artists, but the value of carpets is still more because they are woven with such effort and precision. Ali Rahimi 52

58 MEMORIES AND STORIES Many of us have grown up with carpet looms. For instance, my mother tells her joyful memories of childhood, playing next to her grandmother's carpet loom. There has always been an intermingling of carpets with our lives. Whenever we see carpets, it rekindles fond memories for us. I recall when I first came here, I visited the V&A Museum and felt so proud when I saw the Iranian carpet from Ardabil. Azadeh Tavousian The carpet has had a fundamental and important place in our family. My parents' faces and the floral carpets surrounding us are one of my first childhood memories. The carpets attracted us from childhood. Now, five or six decades later, I can return to my childhood memories and enjoy the wonderful feelings we had in those days. Ali Rahimi Why did I develop an interest in this subject? It is partly due to the region in which I lived. Yazd is a desert region, not a lot can be found on the ground, but the sky is particularly beautiful. The nights are full of stars and filled with patterns and constellations, whilst the ground is very barren. So many patterns and shapes found on the carpets from this region are inspired by the heavenly skies and the perceptions the weavers had of the dreamy, heavenly world. Mahmood Kavir Iranian carpets are one of the purest art-forms. Kamalolmolk, an Iranian painter, once went to a village where he could paint. An old villager was there weaving a carpet and, when the carpet was finished, the old villager gave it to him. Kamalolmolk said I may be a painter but you are the true artist. When Kamalolmolk placed the carpet beneath his feet, he could revel in it, much more than he could enjoy any painting that he d created and it is thus that I am truly fond of Iranian carpets. Iraj Sattari 53

59 I believe it is not just written history, not just stone carvings that connects us to our past. If I were to travel back in time to understand the people of Iran not just ones that appear in the statistics but to really understand these people, studying their carpets would be a good place to start. Armities Shafiei I remember from my childhood, a carpet trader had become a member of our family, he would visit us every month otherwise we would miss him. His visits came about because my grandfather was extremely interested in hand-woven carpets and buying these carpets. When the first female grandchild was born into the household, my grandfather would buy a carpet from this trader to serve as a future dowry for the time when that new-born was to be wed, and this interest had spread through to the whole family. Sadieh Mashaei MAP MEMORIES OF CARPET AND STORIES REGIONS IN IRAN From childhood, the carpets that I saw have left a great impression upon me, they inspired my paintings. The carpet I found most interesting was the one that hung on my parents wall. Nasim Nabavi zadeh I once went to the northern part of Balochistan, and they brought a carpet which was amazing. I was with one of the Balochi heads and stared at the carpet so much because it had very interesting patterns, but I didn't say anything. When I was leaving, the owner of the carpet wrapped the carpet and gave it to me. I was really amazed by the generosity of those people who brought something to me which I never asked for. Reza Hosseinbor One of the best carpets I ve ever seen was a Kashan carpet. It was over 100 years old. Mohtasham Kashan is woven in Kashan, in Persia. They use the best quality wool, they also produce silk carpets and even the wool feels like silk. They are of the best quality and they are very rare and extremely expensive. Harout Barin 54

60 MEMORIES AND STORIES I beg you to appreciate these carpets. Do not think carpets are made, just like that. Some people, who have put their time and effort into making them are not amongst us anymore. Especially the old ones, the ones that have been passed along generations as a memento and are our country's wealth. Mostafa Lotfi I am proud to be a conservator; looking after cultural heritage is the very basis of cultural education. Different places have different cultures; they re fascinating, rich, and educational. And, in my opinion, they should be preserved for future generations. The V&A Museum focuses on art and design and is also used as a place of reference for people now. Frances Hartoq Home has a special meaning to each of us. When we are tired of our daily tasks, home is the safest and most relaxing place that we can come to. Therefore, the objects in our homes have a considerable effect on our spirit and we need to be careful in choosing them. When we enter our home, one of the things that can relax us is the carpet spread on the ground. If we like them to have warm or cold colours, it's because of our emotional state at the time. We can choose different shapes, like rectangles, which can have a specific psychological effect. Yasaman Dehghani I have a carpet in my house. This carpet, upon first appearances, resembles a traditional Iranian carpet, but the illustrations on it are different. All the pre-islamic Persian kings, the heads of their dynasties are illustrated. There is one image of the Achaemenid, one of the Parthian and one of the Sassanid dynasty. And when an English friend of mine came to visit, he said, I can t take my eyes off this carpet How could you lay this on the floor, you should hang this on the wall of your house!. Whenever he visits, he refuses to walk over it. Mahmoud Kavir 55

61 I think Iranian culture has grown with carpets. Carpets are in an Iranian s blood, they are part of the makeup of their interior and they are incredibly important. But they also are important as gifts and family inheritance. They are passed through from generation to generation. Louise Broadhurst Gabbeh was a terrific film and it s exactly what s needed in terms of educating people about handmade carpets. The film shows us just how beautiful Iranian culture is; how lovely the people are; and how a lot of people in the West don t understand the culture. They don t have a good understanding of what things are here. MAP MEMORIES OF CARPET AND STORIES REGIONS IN IRAN Our press doesn t help, either. As Iran opens to the world more and more, this will improve especially as tourists come to visit. The world will get to know how much of a fantastic country Iran is. I ve always loved any film or any article that shows Iran in this way. Bruce Lepere The film, Gabbeh, has a double character. It s a documentary of the tribe, the Qashqai, who wear wonderfully-coloured, beautiful clothes whilst taking their flocks across to pastures in the summer. The idea there is that the carpet is a story-telling scroll. A document of a story and the story here is told by a beautiful young woman, who is the spirit of the carpet, called Gabbeh. She comes out of the carpet and interprets the story that s written in it. At the same time, she appears beside the old woman who s washing the carpet in the river, who made the carpet with her husband. So, the Gabbeh figure could very well be wife s younger self. She could be, as it were, remembering her past and the love affair with the husband she made the carpet with. I was also interested in the Gabbeh because it s one of the tribes in which women and girls are the chief weavers. Marina Warner 56

62 RITUALS Rituals The Interviews We have a ceremony near the region of Kashan known as carpet washing ritual of Ardahal (Ghalishooyan). It takes place in a place known as Mashhad Ardahal, which is also where the resting place of the poet, Sohrab Sepehri, is. On the Friday of the second week of the month of Mehr (September October), the people march, carrying with them a carpet that they consider holy. One group presents this carpet to another group, who take it to a stream and wash. It is then brought back and kept safe until the next year s ceremony. Nearly people take part in this ancient ceremony. Mahmood Kavir The history of Iranian carpets goes back thousands of years; they have always been a part of our culture. They have served a major role in the lives of all Iranians that have been raised on these carpets. We hold our most important occasions on Iranian carpets, such as the ancient festivity of Norouz, the celebration of Sizdeh Bedar in gardens and wedding ceremonies. Azadeh Tavousian When somebody dies in Iran, we don t use a coffin. We wrap the person in a white piece of cloth, which is called a Kafan. We place a carpet on top of the Kafan and take the dead body to the cemetery and put flowers on top of the carpet. Fariba Nazemi One fond memory I have of carpets is the washing of the carpets for Norouz (the spring clean). We would go to my grandfather s house in east of Tehran, near Tehran-Pars. They had a big house and would lay the carpets outside, and the people would help to wash them. Azadeh Tavousian 57

63 Handmade Carpets in a Persian Restaurant Interview with Ali Rahimi The place of carpets is truly one of great significance in our family. We all wondered how great it would be to possess the best and most beautiful carpets to keep for ourselves and our future generations. My dream was to open a traditional Persian restaurant in London. After a couple of years of living in London, I felt that nobody had managed it before. Traditional Persian restaurants are very common in Iran, and we have tried to bring the same style in to London. Customers sit on the carpets whilst eating their meal and enjoying each other s company. This has become a pleasant experience, for Iranians and non-iranians alike. HANDMADE CARPETS IN A PERSIAN RESTAURANT The first thing that entered my mind when establishing the restaurant was to bring over prestigious carpets, with diverse, bright and attractive colours from all corners of the country. Any Iranian from north, south, east and west of the country can spot an aspect of their own culture in our restaurant. I felt a combination of Iranian food and Persian carpets was a highly enticing proposition, primarily to Iranians that would come to our restaurant. But also to people from the UK, who could dine in a traditional Iranian restaurant and enjoy a bit of our culture. Many customers come into the restaurant and take photos of the walls and decorations. The carpets are a favourite among non-iranians. They ask us questions about them: where are they from? How many knots are in them? How have they been woven in that way? How old is it? Are the colours natural? Is it made from silk? We try to provide them with a full explanation and, in turn, they listen with glee and interest. Some even take notes and pictures and come back again with their friends. Though several restaurants now have the same style, we believe that we are the pioneers. Growing this cultural act and launching this method of serving at different spots of London makes us Iranians very proud. Both Iranian and non- Iranian customers find these types of restaurants very pleasing. 58

64 HANDMADE CARPETS IN A PERSIAN RESTAURANT It's been around 17 years since I opened this restaurant and, each year, we have to do more in comparison to the one before to stay competitive. Each time I travel to Iran, I try to experience new sensations and bring them back here. I am constantly buying cushions and mini-carpets or anything that can be a prettier and newer piece of art for our restaurant. I have never stopped and I still believe we are not finished. Maybe we need to do this for many years to transfer a part of Iran's culture to our restaurant and show Britain how beautiful and old the Iranian culture is. Our father s ancestors put so much effort in an item, which might look simple to non-iranians. It can take anything up to two and a half years for a group to work together and weave one carpet. In the old days, carpets were valuable gifts given to kings around the world, not only Iranian kings. Persian rugs were exported for royals and priceless mini-carpets were displayed to portray power and opulence. Iranians would put their love and passion into weaving and gift carpets to people who had important roles in their lives. 59

65 Ealing Rug Gallery: A Collection The Ealing Rug Gallery has more than 20 years of experience in the handmade carpet business. They provide services such as professional mending and cleaning. The gallery has attended the Ideal Home Show for 17 years and the Grand Design Exhibition for 10 years. EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Tabriz Carpet 200 x 150 cm 60

66 EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Qom Carpet 210 x 140 cm Naeen Carpet 307 x 210 cm 61

67 EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Tabriz Carpet 305 x 200 cm Naeen Carpet 202 x 132 cm 62

68 EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Esfahan Carpet 226 x 148 cm Tabriz Carpet 302 x 204 cm 63

69 EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Esfahan Carpet 232 x 157 cm Qom Carpet 300 x 200 cm 64

70 EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Tabriz Carpet 215 x 145 cm Esfahan Carpet 210 x 143 cm 65

71 EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Sarouk Carpet 200 x 300 cm Wool - Cotton Kashan Carpet 300 x 400 cm Wool - Cotton 66

72 EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Esfahan Carpet 250 x 350 cm Wool - Silk Ardabil Carpet 200 x 300 cm Wool - Cotton 67

73 EALING RUG GALLERY: A COLLECTION Naeen Carpet 100 x 150 cm Wool - Cotton Shiraz Carpet 200 x 150 cm Wool - Wool 68

74 PHYSICAL PRESERVATION OF CARPETS Physical Preservation of Carpets The Interviews In Europe there is quite a clear difference between restoration and conservation. In restoration, the purpose is to try and renew the textile to make it as close to how it looked originally. In conservation, we re trying to just preserve what s there for the longest time possible, to keep as much as possible of the original. Frances Hartoq Keeping carpets clean is key, so I think that using a suction vacuum with care to not thrash the side and ends of it too much is a good technique. Christopher Legge Handmade carpets should be cleaned maybe every five years. It depends on how much traffic it gets. If it s a clean carpet, there is no need to clean it again. But if there is central heating in place, the wool gets dry so they will benefit from the cleaning. I don t think you should clean them too frequently because you take the oil out of the wool. In the long term you ll damage it, so you should only clean it if it s necessary. Harout Barin It s always necessary to protect carpets from moths in Europe, and particularly in England, as we have a real problem with carpet moths. It is much worse than it used to be. Whether it is due to global warming, I don t know. Christopher Legge The carpets must be exposed to fresh air and sunshine and they must be kept cleaned. They must not be kept in dark places, hidden in storage or under the bed. This harms the carpet. You should put carpet in an open area. If you go on a holiday, it is better to leave them spread on the ground rather than hiding them somewhere dark and dirty without ventilation. This could lead to moths and destroy the carpet. Mostafa Lotfi 69

75 The longer a carpet remains open, the better. Rolling a carpet is a bit risky and if you want to do so, keep it in a dry place and use anti-moth chemicals. The air in the room you store the carpet must not be humid. Saeed Chalabi If you have a carpet underneath a heavy piece of furniture, you should check it regularly, hoover it regularly, and move things around to shake them out. Christopher Legge PHYSICAL PRESERVATION OF CARPETS 70

76 PERSIAN CARPET BUSINESSES IN THE UK Persian Carpet Businesses in the UK I m the Oriental carpet buyer here at Liberty. When I left school, I had a fascination with textiles. I was brought up in Dublin, Ireland. I came to London and found Liberty, which ran the oldest carpet department in the UK at the time. I fell madly in love with it, learnt a little and then the love affair continued. Bruce Lepere I started my business in 1972 and began as a repairer, as many dealers do. But trading carpets was always more rewarding and more exciting for me, so I managed to scrape together enough money to open a shop in 1974 in Whitney in Oxfordshire. I progressed from there, really. I left Whitney in 1978 and, after a brief period without a shop, I moved to Summertown in I ve had this shop since Christopher Legge I was born in Turkey. My parents are Armenian and they used to be carpet manufacturers. I m the fourth generation and I moved to London in 1976 and started a carpet restoration business. I have been restoring Persian Oriental carpets for private clients, and museums since then. Harout Barin We run Gallery Yacou. It is a family business dealing in antique Oriental carpets. I work with my father, Ezekie Yacoubian. We have been working together for 23 years and my father has been in the business for over 50 years. He started his trade in Tehran, mainly dealing in fine Persian carpets and we moved to Europe over 30 years ago. Then we moved to London in 1986 where we set up our business in London. Robin Yacoubian I started doing the carpet business in England since It s been nearly 20 years. I have been working in the carpet business at Ealing, which is located in west London. We ve been directly importing Iranian carpets here and have been directly selling it to people without any middleman. Saeed Chalabi 71

77 When I was student, I would go and help my father during the summer. Around the year 1982, I started to learn more about carpets whilst helping my father and became interested in them. As a result, I continued my father's job when he retired. I have been running my business for almost three years now but have been working in carpet repairing, washing, buying and selling for 25 years. Mostafa Lotfi Liberty is a very famous department store in London. It was founded by Arthur Liaison Liberty in 1850 and the very first thing he brought to United Kingdom was Oriental carpets. The idea behind the store was to bring goods from the east to the west. Bruce Lepere PERSIAN CARPET BUSINESSES IN THE UK We sell handmade carpets of all kinds but particularly Persian, because I really like Persian carpets. I travel regularly to Iran to source them. I am really interested in any kind of carpets or textiles. We are quite discerning, we don t sell cheap commercial goods. As I ve gotten older, I found less and less satisfactory products; these days we only buy carpets that we think are really close to the best of the best. Christopher Legge We mainly specialise in fine antique Persian carpets. We work with private clientele, interior decorators and connectors. We try to buy the most unique pieces in various types of weave such as tribal, village and, of course, fine Persian. We buy from areas such as Tabriz, Esfahan, Varamin and Kerman and various other regions well known for fine quality pieces. Robin Yacubian Those who know Iranian carpets by its true meaning make up around ten percent of our customers. Another group of our customers are from neighbouring countries, like Iraq and Afghanistan. They are interested in carpets as much as we Iranians are. The remaining seventy percent of customers are westerners, we get all kinds of people from different countries in European. Saeed Chalabi We mostly buy and sell carpets. Occasionally customers also require repairs and washing. Most of our customers want to buy Persian carpets. The customers are mostly Iranians, Arabs and the British. Mostafa Lotfi 72

78 MOSTAFA CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Mostafa Carpet Showroom: A Collection Mostafa Persian Carpet Showroom has 25 years of experience in carpet trading and is located in Queensway Market in London. They also provide services such as repairing and cleaning for handmade carpets. Iranian Azarbaijan Carpet 200 x 150 cm Wool - Cotton 73

79 MOSTAFA CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Bakhtiari Carpet 200 x 150 cm Wool - Cotton 74

80 MOSTAFA CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Kerman Carpet 350 x 250 cm Wool - Cotton 75

81 MOSTAFA CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Naeen Carpet 270 x 170 cm Wool Cotton - Silk 76

82 MOSTAFA CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Farahan Carpet 200 x 150 cm Tree of life design 77

83 MOSTAFA CARPET SHOWROOM: A COLLECTION Soumakh Carpet 350 x 250 cm Haris design 78

84 A RECOMMENDED READING LIST A Recommended Reading List Title Author Published/Re Publisher Language The Persian Carpet Cecil Edwards printed (Persian dates in brackets) 1953 Duckworth English Persian and Other Nicolas Fokker 1973, 1976 Interbook Publishing English Oriental Carpets for Today Carpets of Central May H. Beattie 1976 AB World of Islam English Persia Ties That Bind Leonard M. Helfgott 1994 Festival Publishing Company Ltd The Smithsonian English A Social History of The Iranian Carpet Persian Carpet Fazlollah Heshmati 2001 (1380) Institution Cultural Research Persian Qali Shuyan Razavi Ali Bulookbashi 2000 (1379) Bureau Cultural Research Persian Rites of Symbolic Washing of a Carpet in Mashhad-e Ardihal Az Farsh Ta Arsh Fazlollah Haeshmati 2008, 2010 Bureau Amir Kabir Persian 25 articles about Persian handmade carpet The Kashan Carpet Razavi Amir Hossein (1387, 1389) 2009 (1388) Soroosh Persian Its History and Splendor Chitsazian Carpetology Touraj Zhuleh 2013 Yassavoli Persian/English Carpets, the Unknown Shirin Souresrafil 2016 (1395) Publications Farhangsara Persian/English Identity The Story of Carpets Essie Sakhai 1991 Mirdashti Studio Editions Ltd English Persian Lost Treasures Vladimir Loukonine & 2003 Mage Publishers English Rugs & Carpets of The Anatoli Ivanov Edited by Ian Bennett 1977, 1985 Quattro Publishing English World Carpets from the Tents, Jon Thompson 1988 Limited/New Burlington Books Barry & Jenkins Ltd English Cottages and Workshops of Asia-An Introduction Tribal Rugs Jenny Housego 1978 Scorpion English An Introduction to the Weaving of the Tribes of Iran Publications Limited Tribeswomen of Iran Weaving Memories among Qashqa i Nomads Julia Huang 2014 I.B. Tauris & Co Ltd English 79

85 A Recommended Reading List Cont. Title Author Published/Re Publisher Language Rugs to Riches Caroline Bosly printed (Persian dates in brackets) 1981 George Allen & English An Insider s Guide to Oriental Rugs A History of Textile Art Agnes Geijer 1979 Unwin Pasold Research English The Colour Treasury of Stefan Milhofer 1976 Fund in association with Sotheby Parke Bernet Phaidon Press English Oriental Rugs Fine and Rare Oriental Anglo Persian Carpet 1976 Limited Anglo Persian English Rugs and Weavings From Seventeenth to the Early Twentieth Century Oriental Rugs-A Buyers Company Lee Allane 1988, 1994 Carpet Company Thames and Hudson English Guide All Colour Book of Stanley Reed 1972 Ltd Octopus Books English Oriental Carpets and Rugs Miller s Antique Judith Miller, General 1998, 1999, Limited Octopus Publishing English Encyclopedia Tribal Rugs-A Buyers Editor Lee Allane Group Ltd Thames and Hudson English Guide An Introduction to Arthur Upham Pope 1930 Ltd Peter Davies English Persian Art Since Seventh Century A.D. The Art of Iran Andre Godard 1965 George Allen & English Oriental Rugs: Persian Erich Aschenbrenner 1993 Unwin Ltd Antique Collectors' English v. 2 A Survey of Persian Art Arthur Upham Pope and Phyllis Ackerman 1960 Club Oxford University Press English A RECOMMENDED READING LIST 80

86 GLOSSARY Glossary Allover rugs The designs are composed of repeating or non-central patterns with no particular focus within the rug. Arabesque (Eslimi) A stylised vegetal scroll with bifurcated leaves. 81

87 Ardabil Carpet The world s oldest dated and historically important carpet exhibited in the V&A Museum in London. GLOSSARY Border The band or stripe, or group of bands or stripes around the edge of the carpet that forms a frame to enclose the central field. 82

88 GLOSSARY Carpet weaving tools A number of essential tools for the weaver include: a knife for cutting the yarn, heavy comb for packing down the wefts and a pair of shears for trimming the pile. Cartoon (Naghshe) The design is drawn on graph paper, usually to full scale and coloured with each square representing one knot. 83

89 Chelsea Carpet Persian handmade carpet discovered at an antique dealer in Chelsea, London. It can be seen at the V&A Museum. GLOSSARY Felt carpet The simplest type of carpet made of natural wool s fibres. In the process of wetfelting, hot water is applied to layers of animal hairs, while repeated agitation and compression causes the fibres to weave together into a single piece of fabric. 84

90 GLOSSARY Fringe Warps extending from the ends of a rug to prevent the wefts and knots from unravelling. Gabbeh Hand-knotted nomad carpets from the province of Fars in southern Iran, which has a simple design that comes from real events, usually woven by women and young girls. 85

91 Garden carpet (Kheshti) A design in which the field of the rug is divided into squares or rectangles that contain plants and animals, or outdoor scenes. Usually woven by Bakhtiaris in western Iran. GLOSSARY Hali magazine Hali Magazine is an encyclopedic fully illustrated special-interest quarterly publication focusing on antique and modern textile art of the world, especially Oriental rugs and carpets. 86

92 GLOSSARY Hunting Motif A common motif on Persian carpets, consisting of hunters on their horses, deer, predators and flowery trees. Jufti Knot A carpet knot produced by tying the pile yarn around four or six warps strands rather than the customary two. Kelim (Gilim) The most common kind of a handmade Oriental flat-weave. 87

93 Khosrow Carpet Ancient Persian carpet, possibly the most magnificent of all time, made for the Ctesiphon palace of king Khosrow. GLOSSARY Knots The way of fixing the pile yarn to the warp, the most common knots are the asymmetric and symmetric. Loom A wooden stand for weaving. It can be either vertical or horizontal. 88

94 GLOSSARY Medallion (Persian Toranj) A typical Persian carpet layout located in the centre of rug. Minakhani Pattern Made up of flowers arranged in rows and interlinked by diamond or circular lines. It is often seen on Varamin rugs. Motif Any single form or integrated group of forms that make up design of a rug. 89

95 Oriental Carpet Manufacturers (OCM) A London-based Oriental carpet trading company, established in 1907/8 in Istanbul. From 1911 onwards, the OCM operated from the Hamedan Province north western Iran. GLOSSARY Paisley (Boteh) A motif used in Persia since the Sassanid Dynasty AD

96 GLOSSARY Pazyryk Carpet One of the oldest carpets in the world, around BC. It was found frozen in 1949 in a grave in Pazyryk Valley, Siberia. It is now displayed at Hermitage Museum. Pile The top layer of a carpet that stands perpendicular from the warp. Prayer carpet (Mihrab pattern) Used by Muslims when praying, showing the direction against Mecca. 91

97 Runner (Kenareh) A long, narrow hand-knotted carpet, used in hallways and staircases. GLOSSARY Shah-Abbasi pattern A repeat pattern of various types of blossoms and palmettes associated with Safavid carpets. 92

98 GLOSSARY Sickle Leaf A long-curved leaf with a concave edge. Tree of Life Represented by a tree of many branches which stand as a metaphor for how all life on Earth is connected and the liveliness of the spirit. 93

99 Vase Carpet Persian carpets with a field design of flowers or tendrils generally including a vase. GLOSSARY Warp The thread stretched vertically on a carpet loom. 94

100 GLOSSARY Weft The yarn that the weaver passes across the width of the rug between warp threads. The weft threads maintain the knots of the pile in place. Ziegler Carpets Hand knotted carpets manufactured between in Arak in western Iran. 95