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Rug
Dragon carpet (fragmentary)
Rug
Persian or Caucasian
about 1700
Object Place: Possibly Tabriz, northwestern Iran, or Caucasus
Medium/Technique
Wool warp, wool weft, wool pile
Dimensions
251.0 x 198 cm (98 13/16 x 77 15/16 in.)
Credit Line
Bequest of Mrs. Edward Jackson Holmes
Accession Number64.2101
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAsia, Fashion and Textiles
ClassificationsTextiles
DescriptionDragon carpets are named for the S-shaped creatures contained in a latticework of sawtooth leaves. In the bottom third of this fragmentary carpet, two yellow dragons face away from a shield-like palmette.
Because dragon carpets resemble nineteenth-century Caucasian rugs, they have often been attributed to the Caucasus (the area between the Black and Caspian Seas). In actuality, they may have been made farther south, in and around the city of Tabriz--an area better situated for their manufacture and export.
Main field ground: blue. Design: large palmettes, lattice of serrated leaves containing conventionalized dragons and other fauna; colors: red, yellow, blue, green, cream-white, and dark blue. Border ground: neutral yellow. Design: conventionalized leaves and flowers. Condition: shortened, with restoration, including most of top and bottom borders.
Because dragon carpets resemble nineteenth-century Caucasian rugs, they have often been attributed to the Caucasus (the area between the Black and Caspian Seas). In actuality, they may have been made farther south, in and around the city of Tabriz--an area better situated for their manufacture and export.
Main field ground: blue. Design: large palmettes, lattice of serrated leaves containing conventionalized dragons and other fauna; colors: red, yellow, blue, green, cream-white, and dark blue. Border ground: neutral yellow. Design: conventionalized leaves and flowers. Condition: shortened, with restoration, including most of top and bottom borders.
ProvenanceEdward Jackson Holmes collection. Lent by Mrs. Edward Jackson Holmes, August 9, 1950; bequest of same, Dec. 9, 1964