Cotton Agra: circa 1880 - 1890

#19973
Cotton Agra
3’10” x 7’0”
Circa 1880-1890

Cotton pile rugs were woven in Agra for both domestic use during the summer, and for export as an alternative to wool pile pieces in more saturated colors. The tonality is generally lighter, nearly pastel, and the number of colors in fewer than on a wool carpet. Cotton yarn has less absorbency than does wool or silk, thus the same dyes produce a softer tonality.

The indented directional lattice displaying the foil flowering plants is derived directly from Deccani carpets of the 18th Century. The Deccani sultanates, south of the Mughal empire, wove carpets in styles simplified from their Mughal archetypes. The lattice repeat was extremely popular and easy to weave. Daccani silk rugs of the circa 1800 period are frequently on a yellow ground and display repeating lattice patterns. This rug (#19973) appears to be a later interpretation of this style.



The border, the so-called “open kufesque” type is featured on “lotto” and small-pattern “Holbein” rugs from Ushak in western Turkeym from the mid 15th Century until the end of the 16th Century. The designer of this Agra worked from a book illustration to produce this interpretation of a classic pattern. Rug books with color illustrations began to appear in the 1890’s and Indian manufacturers were among the first to utilize them to produce innovative patterns.

Please see this rug on our website: http://www.rahmanan.com/inventory/show/19973/

“German” Condition

Sometimes in the antique rug industry, you will come across a client who is looking for a rug in “German” Condition (Generally, this will be a European client). What this means is that they are looking for a rug that is in perfect condition, with an un-used look. The phrase comes from the fact that rugs in Europe just don’t age the same as those in America. In many European nations, the antique rug is revered. They are placed in show rooms where they are generally un-touched. The rugs in these types of settings age very well. Their color is strong, their pile full, and are without stains or spills. In many instances one cannot even tell that rugs in such perfect condition are antique at all.

For most Americans, however, this is a turn off. Generally, an American client desires that patina that comes with a used antique rug. It is a look, or feeling, that is telling of the rugs age and history.

The way that antique rugs are used and stored can greatly affect what market they will be sellable in. Rugs which have been kept pristine and new looking will be more valuable to the European market, while rugs that show age and use tend to be more desired in the American market.

Oriental Influence on European Rugs

Antique rugs were once new production. About 80 - 90 years ago, carpets from the orient were sold at extremely high prices throughout Europe. European manufacturers saw the need to produce such products at lower costs, causing a sweep of production through Europe in places such as Donegal and Axminster.
This is the reason that some Donegal rugs can be found with Turkish Oushak patterns. While the need to produce a product for cheaper dominated the "where" of the production, there was still a desire for the cultural feel of an oriental rug. On top of being less expensive to make, there was also more control over how the product was made.

A Weft of Different Color

Recently, a client brought up the different colors found in the wefts of Oushak carpets. He noted that some seemed to have red wefts, while others remained un-dyed. He wondered weather or not this was a telling factor on age.

Many different colors of wool have been used as wefts in the weaving of antique rugs. The reason for this is that there was a time when nothing went to waste. After weaving a rug, there was often leftover wool, which may not have been enough to weave a new rug. These extras were then used as the base to start a new rug. While we may not do this today for the sake of regularity in product production, in the past people used what they had. This may be one of the many minor nuances that give your antique rug the character that you love.

Rug Classification

The first thing that most people want to understand about rugs is how to classify them. There are a number of ways to do this.

One could classify rugs by general rug type:
a. Tribal Weavings
b. Cottage Rugs
c. Workshop Rugs

One could classify rugs by the style they portray:
a. Tribal, or geometric, weavings.
b. Decorative, or casual, rugs.
c. City, or formal, rugs.


From there, a more specific classification comes into play, where the rug is from:
Persia
Turkey
India
The Caucuses
Europe
China
Turkoman
America
Israel
Morocco
Palestine


After pinpointing where a rug is from, it can further be categorized by weave type and color to a distinct area within the countries of origin. Here is a list of most types of rugs:

Persian Rugs:
Afshar
Bakhtiari
Bakhshaiesh
Bibikabad
Bidjar
Farahan
Gabbeh
Ghashgaie
Hamadan
Heriz
Isfahan
Joshaqan
Karaja
Kashan
Kashan – Dabir
Kashan – Mohtasham
Kazvin
Kerman
Kerman – Lavar
Kurdish
Lilihan
Mahal
Malayer
Malayer – Mishan
Mashad
Mashad – Sabeer
Mood (NE Persian)
NW Persian
Qum
Sarouk
Sarouk – Farahan
Sarouk – Mohajeran
Senneh
Serab
Seraband
Serapi
Shiraz
Sultanabad
Sultanabad – Ziegler
Tabriz
Tabriz – Haji Jalili
Tehran

Turkish Rugs:
Ghiordes
Melas
Oushak
Oushak – Angora
Oushak – Borlou
Sivas
Yuruk

Indian Rugs:
Agra
Amritsar
Dhurrie
Sharistan

Caucasian:
Bidjov
Chi-Chi
Kuba
Karabagh
Lesghi
Moghan
Shirvan
Talish
Zeychor
Kazak

European:
Arraiolos Needlework
Aubusson
Axminster
Besserabian
Donegal
English Art Deco
German – Bauhaus
Needlepoint
Rya
Savonnerie
Spanish – Cuenca
Tapestry
Ukranian





American:
American Hooked Rugs
Braided Rug
Navajo
Rag Rug

Chinese:
Art Deco
Khotan
Mongolian
Ning Xia
Peking
Samarghand

Turkoman:
Baluch
Ersari
Beshir
Hatchli

Other:
Bezalel – Palestine
Israeli
Kerghiz
Moroccan

All of the above:
Soumak
Kilim



I will go further into the details on the classification of rugs in my next post.

What would you like to know about antique rugs?

We at Rahmanan are working to give you the best possible experience in shopping for your antique rug. We understand that many people have questions or concerns when buying an antique for their floor, and have a yearning to know more about the processes and people who were involved in the craft of these pieces. We would love to answer any questions you may have, as well as educate our customers more about the wonderful world of antique rugs. We would like to provide the ultimate purchasing experience for our clients, so if there are any topics you would be interested in knowing more about, please let us know.