SPANISH AND MAMLUK CARPETS
Comparisons of decoration and structure
Carol Bier

LATE-ANTIQUE TEXTILES
From Coptic Egypt
Ulrike Horak

Two recent exhibitions, Carpets of Andalusia and Mamluk Rugs from Egypt, at The Textile Museum afforded a rare opportunity to compare two radically different rug-weaving traditions from the perspectives of design and weave structure. While not often evident to the casual viewer, there is a significant relationship between design, pattern, and weave structure in all Oriental carpets. The opportunity to explore such differences warrants careful examination and critical viewing.The Mamluk rugs all probably date from the last quarter of the 15th century. They comprise a cohesive group defined by color, a geometric style, and similarity of weave characteristics. ...

The history of the research
into late-antique textiles
from Egypt starts in the 19th century, at which point not only papyri but also the first textiles and pieces of cloth from the land on the Nile found there way to Europe. The Austrian antiques dealer, Theodor Graf, played a prominent part in its discoveries, as he, who also was a founding member of the Viennese papyrus collection Archduke Rainer, realised the importance of these so-called Coptic textiles. In a letter to the Oriental researcher, Josef von Karabacek, dated 28 March 1882, he wrote: ÒMy Arabs anyway have thrown away such cloth in their search for antiques, when they found them, because they deemed them worthless! For the first package I gave them a nice sum of money, not for those few pieces, but to give them the taste for it, so that they will bring me better pieces, I do not doubt I shall soon be successful in receiving a large selection of antique pieces of cloth taken from the graves!Ó This excerpt of the letter shows clearly, ...

Where knotted rugs first originated re-mains a mystery today despite the fact that progress in archaeological research and other studies have contributed in shedding light on the earliest and oldest phases of weaving in the East. Knotted fragments, or at least fragments featuring a pile added to the weave of weft and warp, have been found in many Middle-Eastern and Far-Eastern sites.
The oldest fragment comes from a settlement on the banks of the river Normhong in China. It comprises an exceptional strip of knotted rug with long tufts of red and blue-dyed wool, tightly-packed on a rough structure. ....