Page 154 - 2021 April 1, ART OF THE ISLAMIC AND Indian Worlds Including Oriental Rugs, Christie's London

VARIOUS PROPERTIES
■147A
AN IMPORTANT KIRMAN 'VASE' CARPET FRAGMENT
SOUTH EAST PERSIA, FIRST HALF 17TH CENTURY
Touches of light wear, minor loss and repair, a few spots of old moth damage, overall excellent condition for
its age
8ft.8in. x 5ft.5in. (267cm. x 168cm.)
£400,000-600,000 US$570,000-850,000
€470,000-700,000
PROVENANCE:
Purchased in Europe during the 1920s by a British collector who lived in Europe between 1920-1939
before returning to live in the UK
Acquired by the present owner in 2017 from his descendants
Technical Analysis:
Warps: cotton, Z spun 4 plied off-white,
Wefts: wool and cotton three passes, the first and third wefts are wool, 2 Z spun off-white, light pinkish-
beige to brown, second weft 2 Z spun, blue-grey, grey-beige, blue and off-white.
Pile: mostly 2 Z spun, with the possiblity of a few 3 Z, Sw plied, asymmetric knot open to the left
Knot count: per square cm. ranges from 27.5 to 39, with most areas of the carpet around 36 knots per
square cm.
Sides: later dark blue wool overcasting
Ends: later red wool blanket stitch
Colours: lac-red, rose-pink, fuschia-pink, apricot, taupe, oxidised walnut-brown, celadon-green, apple-
green, forest-green, indigo, sapphire-blue, powder-blue, rust-orange, sandy-yellow, pale lemon-yellow,
ivory, charcoal-black (17)
This previously unpublished and unrecorded Safavid fragment, until relatively recently, had remained in
the same English collection for nearly a century. It is a significant section from a once truly magnificent
Kirman ‘Vase’ carpet woven in the first half of the 17th century and is pivotal in our understanding of the
overall scheme. It is a generous portion belonging to the upper left-hand section that includes a narrow
strip of the bold indigo strapwork border and a substantial section of the upper central field that is filled
with a complex three-plane lattice of floral trellis with a background of flowering vine, featuring two
partial Chinese style vases on a crimson-red field.
The term 'Vase' was first coined following an exhibition organised by May Beattie in 1976, which
highlighted a group of carpets with designs featuring stylised vases and which all shared a similar
weaving technique. The term has since been used to signify all of those carpets woven in this manner
and, whether their designs include vases or not, all are now referred to as such, (May H. Beattie,
Birmingham, 1976, p.11). The structure of the 'Vase'-technique group is very unusual in having three
passes of wefts after each row of knots. The first and third wefts are tautly pulled over the closely
laid warps with the second weft being much thinner, mostly in natural colours, as seen on the present
fragment, but also integrating occasional passes of different coloured wool. The use of fine silk for
the second of the three wefts, denotes a carpet of the highest quality within the group. May Beattie
suggests that it is not only finely drawn examples that are considered to be early in the canon of
‘Vase’-technique carpets but also those with particularly complex designs which would have required
an excellent draughtsman who would likely have been working under court patronage during the reign
of Shah 'Abbas the Great (1587-1629). Shah 'Abbas I was a great patron of the arts and had a deep
appreciation for sumptuous textiles, silks and woven carpets, and production rapidly grew under his
patronage with a number of workshops weaving simultaneously during the 17th century. A number
of these would have been working directly for the shah, producing carpets which were specifically
commissioned to be appreciated locally.
Including the present lot, a dozen carpet fragments from this same impressive carpet exist
internationally in both private and institutional collections but which vary dramatically in size and
condition. It was Ian Bennett who researched and traced the majority of these pieces and believed
that they were all part of one impressive carpet which, when added together, would have measured
approximately 1460cm. in length and 585cm. in width. While fragments survive from other seemingly
enormous ‘Vase’ technique carpets, unfortunately there is not one complete carpet that is known to have
survived intact.

152 In addition to the hammer price, a Buyer’s Premium (plus VAT) is payable. Other taxes and/or an Artist Resale Royalty
fee are also payable if the lot has a tax or λ symbol. Check Section D of the Conditions of Sale at the back of this catalogue.