Stars of the Caucasas

Contents

chap ter 1

Silk Treasures of Azerbaijan

Chap ter 2

Historical Azerbaijan

mu r r ay L. eil a nd I I I

22

Chap ter 3

Caucasian Embroideries in Context

38

Chap ter 4

Safavid-style Domestic Embroideries from Historical Azerbaijan, 1550–1800

Chap ter 5

A l b e r t o B o r a l e v i & A s l i S a m a d o va

penn y oa k l ey

m ich a el fr a nses

8

48

Ir ina Koshor idze

Silk Culture in the Caucasus

106

Chap ter 6

Azerbaijan Embroidery Techniques

118

jennifer w ea r den

Chap ter 7

What Went Before to Make It as It was?

Caucasian Embroidered Textiles from The Textile Museum Collection

Chap ter 8

Chap ter 9

Chap ter 10

sumru k rody

‘Busily Engaged on Embroidery’: Collecting and Curatorship for the V&A moya c a r ey

An Early Museum Collection: Azerbaijan Embroideries in the V&A penn y oa k l ey

A Shared Design Lexicon: Azerbaijan Embroideries and Rugs br i a n mor ehouse

Bibliography Endnotes

Image Credits

122

146

154

198

214 218

225

Contents

chap ter 1

Silk Treasures of Azerbaijan

Chap ter 2

Historical Azerbaijan

mu r r ay L. eil a nd I I I

22

Chap ter 3

Caucasian Embroideries in Context

38

Chap ter 4

Safavid-style Domestic Embroideries from Historical Azerbaijan, 1550–1800

Chap ter 5

A l b e r t o B o r a l e v i & A s l i S a m a d o va

penn y oa k l ey

m ich a el fr a nses

8

48

Ir ina Koshor idze

Silk Culture in the Caucasus

106

Chap ter 6

Azerbaijan Embroidery Techniques

118

jennifer w ea r den

Chap ter 7

What Went Before to Make It as It was?

Caucasian Embroidered Textiles from The Textile Museum Collection

Chap ter 8

Chap ter 9

Chap ter 10

sumru k rody

‘Busily Engaged on Embroidery’: Collecting and Curatorship for the V&A moya c a r ey

An Early Museum Collection: Azerbaijan Embroideries in the V&A penn y oa k l ey

A Shared Design Lexicon: Azerbaijan Embroideries and Rugs br i a n mor ehouse

Bibliography Endnotes

Image Credits

122

146

154

198

214 218

225

300 examples, excluding Kaitag and other related embroideries; 2) The publication of this

1.5 Niche with crested birds and

embroideries; and 3) A dedicated academic session at the October 2017 ISAC symposium.9

century. Silk embroidery in surface

book, written bya number of specialists, as the first comprehensive study of these The most ambitious part of the project, however, is a proposed international

exhibition at a future date, ‘Silk Treasures: Azerbaijan Embroideries from the

flowering plants, Azerbaijan, 19th darning on cotton, 125 × 180 cm.

Amin Motamedi Collection, Hamburg

16th–18th centuries’, in which it is hoped that the two Azerbaijan National Museum of Art pieces will be included, together with anticipated loans from the Victoria and

Albert Museum, the Textile Museum, the Berlin Museum of Islamic Art, and several important international private collections.

Such an unprecedented exhibition would be the first to unite such a significant

number of otherwise inaccessible public-museum artefacts and privately owned

objects and bring them, albeit temporarily, back to their motherland. We believe that

when realised, because of the great variety and aesthetics of Azerbaijan embroideries, the exhibition will be a delight not only to professionals but to a wider public.

Before the Silk Treasures project, it was surprising that so little research had been

done on these embroideries, given their wide appreciation and collection in the west for well over 100 years. They were purchased by a few knowledgeable and sensitive

collectors and acquired by or donated to important museums such as the V&A and the

Textile Museum. They were shown in important exhibitions, most notably the famous 1931 ‘Exhibition of Persian Art’ in London, which eventually led to the publication of

Arthur Upham Pope and Phyllis Ackerman’s monumental Survey of Persian Art (1938–39), but they were often presented with vague or incorrect labelling. Even today, in the

most important museums, these embroideries appear in inventories under different

and confusing names and categories. The aim of the Silk Treasures project is to remedy this situation and to work towards a well-informed appreciation of these fascinating and beautiful folk textiles.

1.5

chap ter 1

sil k t r ea sur es of a zer ba ija n

17

300 examples, excluding Kaitag and other related embroideries; 2) The publication of this

1.5 Niche with crested birds and

embroideries; and 3) A dedicated academic session at the October 2017 ISAC symposium.9

century. Silk embroidery in surface

book, written bya number of specialists, as the first comprehensive study of these The most ambitious part of the project, however, is a proposed international

exhibition at a future date, ‘Silk Treasures: Azerbaijan Embroideries from the

flowering plants, Azerbaijan, 19th darning on cotton, 125 × 180 cm.

Amin Motamedi Collection, Hamburg

16th–18th centuries’, in which it is hoped that the two Azerbaijan National Museum of Art pieces will be included, together with anticipated loans from the Victoria and

Albert Museum, the Textile Museum, the Berlin Museum of Islamic Art, and several important international private collections.

Such an unprecedented exhibition would be the first to unite such a significant

number of otherwise inaccessible public-museum artefacts and privately owned

objects and bring them, albeit temporarily, back to their motherland. We believe that

when realised, because of the great variety and aesthetics of Azerbaijan embroideries, the exhibition will be a delight not only to professionals but to a wider public.

Before the Silk Treasures project, it was surprising that so little research had been

done on these embroideries, given their wide appreciation and collection in the west for well over 100 years. They were purchased by a few knowledgeable and sensitive

collectors and acquired by or donated to important museums such as the V&A and the

Textile Museum. They were shown in important exhibitions, most notably the famous 1931 ‘Exhibition of Persian Art’ in London, which eventually led to the publication of

Arthur Upham Pope and Phyllis Ackerman’s monumental Survey of Persian Art (1938–39), but they were often presented with vague or incorrect labelling. Even today, in the

most important museums, these embroideries appear in inventories under different

and confusing names and categories. The aim of the Silk Treasures project is to remedy this situation and to work towards a well-informed appreciation of these fascinating and beautiful folk textiles.

1.5

chap ter 1

sil k t r ea sur es of a zer ba ija n

17

plat e 2

Embroidery Probably a cushion cover, 18th century

Silk embroidery, regular surface darning with black and white outlines in cross stitch

Azerbaijan National Museum of Art, T-21

The embroideries worked entirely in cross stitch

represent an angel, or peri. The pair of hooks

this study. This stitch uses twice as much silk as

form of the split-leaf arabesque. The diamond

probably represent the earliest of the pieces in

the others, so it was more likely to have been in favour during the period of relative prosperity, in the latter years of Safavid rule. The Afghan invasion of 1722, followed by the upheavals

outside the tip of each diamond is a vestigial theme is continued in the tiny motifs in the

green border, which also occur in the surrounds of the blue cartouches.

The medallions are linked by blue cartouches,

under Nadir Shah Afshar (active from 1727,

each with a small central yellow polygon

economy, so would not have been a time for an

The yellow frames have alternating S shapes and

Shah 1736–1747) wrought havoc on the Persian extravagant use of silk thread. However, it is quite possible that the use of cross-stitch

outlines, as here, provides a link between the two techniques.

The black-brown ground, now largely

corroded, has an endless repeat design of a red

diamond-shaped medallion that encloses a blue

star within a cream square. At each outer edge is a blue pomegranate clasped by serrated cream or

flanked by red motifs that are probably vegetal. small dots or diamonds.

The single border surrounding the whole

piece has a yellow ground, with flame-like

blue-green palmettes with white stems and stylised leaves. These alternate with small squares outlined in black and white and

containing red diamonds on a pale green ground.

The layout, if not the detail, of this piece is

very similar to (plate 7), and both are worked in

yellow leaves.

the same two techniques.

figure with wings instead of arms, which may

the design difficult to read. p.o.

Within each tip of the diamond is a green

The corrosion to the black/brown areas makes

21

plat e 2

Embroidery Probably a cushion cover, 18th century

Silk embroidery, regular surface darning with black and white outlines in cross stitch

Azerbaijan National Museum of Art, T-21

The embroideries worked entirely in cross stitch

represent an angel, or peri. The pair of hooks

this study. This stitch uses twice as much silk as

form of the split-leaf arabesque. The diamond

probably represent the earliest of the pieces in

the others, so it was more likely to have been in favour during the period of relative prosperity, in the latter years of Safavid rule. The Afghan invasion of 1722, followed by the upheavals

outside the tip of each diamond is a vestigial theme is continued in the tiny motifs in the

green border, which also occur in the surrounds of the blue cartouches.

The medallions are linked by blue cartouches,

under Nadir Shah Afshar (active from 1727,

each with a small central yellow polygon

economy, so would not have been a time for an

The yellow frames have alternating S shapes and

Shah 1736–1747) wrought havoc on the Persian extravagant use of silk thread. However, it is quite possible that the use of cross-stitch

outlines, as here, provides a link between the two techniques.

The black-brown ground, now largely

corroded, has an endless repeat design of a red

diamond-shaped medallion that encloses a blue

star within a cream square. At each outer edge is a blue pomegranate clasped by serrated cream or

flanked by red motifs that are probably vegetal. small dots or diamonds.

The single border surrounding the whole

piece has a yellow ground, with flame-like

blue-green palmettes with white stems and stylised leaves. These alternate with small squares outlined in black and white and

containing red diamonds on a pale green ground.

The layout, if not the detail, of this piece is

very similar to (plate 7), and both are worked in

yellow leaves.

the same two techniques.

figure with wings instead of arms, which may

the design difficult to read. p.o.

Within each tip of the diamond is a green

The corrosion to the black/brown areas makes

21

2.7

2.8

The region was captured by the Russians in 1795 along with Baku. The Russians then

abandoned the area, only to return in 1805 when they forced Mustafa Khan of Shirvan

(1796–1820) to repudiate his Persian allies. The Shirvan Khanate was finally annexed by Russia in 1805 during the Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813. It was abolished in 1820.

2.9

2.7 The Palace of Sheki Khans, built

are often labelled as ‘Ganja’. Rugs from the 19th century tended to be in a longer format

18th-century Azerbaijan. It was

rugs.33 From 1780 to 1783, the Ganja Khanate was a condominium between Heraclius II

by Huseyn Khan, is a monument of

originally constructed as a summer residence for the khanate’s rulers

Baku Khanate

2.8 The Palace of the Shirvanshahs in

However, after Nadir Shah Afshar’s military successes, the Russians agreed to cede

a UNESCO World Heritage site. The

During the Russo-Persian War of 1722–23, Baku was occupied by the Russians.

Baku back to Persia in 1735. The shah appointed Mirza Muhammad Khan I (an Afshari

Qizilbash) as khan. This khanate (1747–1806) had a short period of existence after Nadir Shah’s death. It left Baku almost independent, which in turn prompted challengers.

In 1768, the Khan of Guba, Fatali Shah (r. 1758–1789), took Baku by force. He installed

his brother Abd Allah Beg, former puppet Khan of Shirvan. Such obvious proxy rule

was unstable, and in 1772 Mirza Muhammad’s son Malik Muhammad reclaimed

Baku. After his death in 1783, his son Mirza Muhammad II became khan. This

triggered a series of pretenders who quickly rose and fell, leaving the way open for

Russian control, which ended in 1797 and led to the return of Mirza Muhammad II. He

was deposed in 1801 but became Khan of Guba from 1809 until 1810. In the Treaty of Gulistan (1813) the Qajars recognised the Russian annexation of their former

Caucasian vassals, including Baku.

31

Baku is, like the nearby Maiden Tower, building of the complex of palace, mosque, pavilions and tombs was begun by Shirvanshah Sheykh

than other Caucasian types, and were among the most coarsely knotted Caucasian of Georgia and Ibrahim-Khalil Khan Javanshir of Karabakh. In 1783, Ganja rose up

against its overlords. The Georgians tried to reconquer Ganja at the end of 1784 and in

1785–86, but failed. In 1795, Javad Khan of Ganja joined the Iranian expedition against

Georgia.34 In 1803 the Russians took Ganja. In 1805 the khanate was abolished and

reformed into the military district of Elizavetpol. Descendants of the Ziyadoglu Qajar dynasty bore the name of Ziyadkhanov in the Russian Empire.35

Ibrahim I in 1411 following the transfer

Karabakh Khanate

destruction in an earthquake

northern Safavid Empire. It emerged as a major challenge to Iranian control. It has long

of his capital from Shamakhy after its

2.9 Villagers hold up an Afshan-

On the southwestern border with Iran, Karabakh was one of four provinces in the

been revered as a great centre of textile production,36 but in recent years many scholars

design runner, probably made in

have questioned this attribution. In 1540 Shah Tahmasp I appointed the Ziyadoglu

at a carpet exhibition in the Guba

several years the capital was the castle of Bayat. The newly built town of Panahabad—

Shirvan in the mid to late 19th century,

family, who were relatives of the Turkic-speaking Qajars, as khans.37 For the first

region, 1926

later called Shusha—was readied by the mid-1750s.38 In the summer of 1795, Shusha

underwent a major attack by Aga Muhammad Khan Qajar. According to Safavid

tradition, the shah had to control the South Caucasus before his coronation. He did not

take Shusha, and instead attacked Tiflis (Tbilisi) and carried off many captives, which

Ganja Khanate

This khanate (1747–1805), located between Georgia and the Karabakh region, was ruled

was enough for his purpose.

In 1797 the Persians captured Shusha, even though the Khan of Karabakh had been

by the Ziyadoglu dynasty of Qajar extraction. Ganja was so prosperous it had a mint,

paying tribute. Their victory was short lived as several days after Shusha fell the shah

chap ter 2

h is tor ic a l a zer ba ija n

and its coins were circulated throughout the region. Rugs and textiles from this area 32

was killed and the khan returned. Fath Ali Shah Qajar (r. 1772–1834) appointed the old 35

2.7

2.8

The region was captured by the Russians in 1795 along with Baku. The Russians then

abandoned the area, only to return in 1805 when they forced Mustafa Khan of Shirvan

(1796–1820) to repudiate his Persian allies. The Shirvan Khanate was finally annexed by Russia in 1805 during the Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813. It was abolished in 1820.

2.9

2.7 The Palace of Sheki Khans, built

are often labelled as ‘Ganja’. Rugs from the 19th century tended to be in a longer format

18th-century Azerbaijan. It was

rugs.33 From 1780 to 1783, the Ganja Khanate was a condominium between Heraclius II

by Huseyn Khan, is a monument of

originally constructed as a summer residence for the khanate’s rulers

Baku Khanate

2.8 The Palace of the Shirvanshahs in

However, after Nadir Shah Afshar’s military successes, the Russians agreed to cede

a UNESCO World Heritage site. The

During the Russo-Persian War of 1722–23, Baku was occupied by the Russians.

Baku back to Persia in 1735. The shah appointed Mirza Muhammad Khan I (an Afshari

Qizilbash) as khan. This khanate (1747–1806) had a short period of existence after Nadir Shah’s death. It left Baku almost independent, which in turn prompted challengers.

In 1768, the Khan of Guba, Fatali Shah (r. 1758–1789), took Baku by force. He installed

his brother Abd Allah Beg, former puppet Khan of Shirvan. Such obvious proxy rule

was unstable, and in 1772 Mirza Muhammad’s son Malik Muhammad reclaimed

Baku. After his death in 1783, his son Mirza Muhammad II became khan. This

triggered a series of pretenders who quickly rose and fell, leaving the way open for

Russian control, which ended in 1797 and led to the return of Mirza Muhammad II. He

was deposed in 1801 but became Khan of Guba from 1809 until 1810. In the Treaty of Gulistan (1813) the Qajars recognised the Russian annexation of their former

Caucasian vassals, including Baku.

31

Baku is, like the nearby Maiden Tower, building of the complex of palace, mosque, pavilions and tombs was begun by Shirvanshah Sheykh

than other Caucasian types, and were among the most coarsely knotted Caucasian of Georgia and Ibrahim-Khalil Khan Javanshir of Karabakh. In 1783, Ganja rose up

against its overlords. The Georgians tried to reconquer Ganja at the end of 1784 and in

1785–86, but failed. In 1795, Javad Khan of Ganja joined the Iranian expedition against

Georgia.34 In 1803 the Russians took Ganja. In 1805 the khanate was abolished and

reformed into the military district of Elizavetpol. Descendants of the Ziyadoglu Qajar dynasty bore the name of Ziyadkhanov in the Russian Empire.35

Ibrahim I in 1411 following the transfer

Karabakh Khanate

destruction in an earthquake

northern Safavid Empire. It emerged as a major challenge to Iranian control. It has long

of his capital from Shamakhy after its

2.9 Villagers hold up an Afshan-

On the southwestern border with Iran, Karabakh was one of four provinces in the

been revered as a great centre of textile production,36 but in recent years many scholars

design runner, probably made in

have questioned this attribution. In 1540 Shah Tahmasp I appointed the Ziyadoglu

at a carpet exhibition in the Guba

several years the capital was the castle of Bayat. The newly built town of Panahabad—

Shirvan in the mid to late 19th century,

family, who were relatives of the Turkic-speaking Qajars, as khans.37 For the first

region, 1926

later called Shusha—was readied by the mid-1750s.38 In the summer of 1795, Shusha

underwent a major attack by Aga Muhammad Khan Qajar. According to Safavid

tradition, the shah had to control the South Caucasus before his coronation. He did not

take Shusha, and instead attacked Tiflis (Tbilisi) and carried off many captives, which

Ganja Khanate

This khanate (1747–1805), located between Georgia and the Karabakh region, was ruled

was enough for his purpose.

In 1797 the Persians captured Shusha, even though the Khan of Karabakh had been

by the Ziyadoglu dynasty of Qajar extraction. Ganja was so prosperous it had a mint,

paying tribute. Their victory was short lived as several days after Shusha fell the shah

chap ter 2

h is tor ic a l a zer ba ija n

and its coins were circulated throughout the region. Rugs and textiles from this area 32

was killed and the khan returned. Fath Ali Shah Qajar (r. 1772–1834) appointed the old 35

The Ottomans occupied Azerbaijan from 1722 to 1736, but Nadir Shah Afshar

(r. 1736–1747) soon regained much of the lost land and more. After his death, the empire

slowly began to crumble again, and the Caucasian territories were broken up into

khanates under local tribal leaders. What is today the northern half of the Caucasus, including much of present-day Azerbaijan, consisted of, from west to east, the

Khanates of Nakhchivan, Karabakh, Javad and Salyan, with the Kingdom of Kartli-

Kakheti (part of Georgia) in the northwest, the Khanates of Ganja and Sheki and the

4.1 The Esterhazy Appliqué. Pictorial

scene in niche with angels in border.

Iran, 1525–1550. Silk, leather and

pigment, appliqué and embroidery,

254 × 278 cm. Formerly Prince Miklós Esterházy. Museum of Applied Arts,

Budapest, acquired in 1919, 52.2801.1

Sultanate of Ilisu in the north, and the Khanates of Guba, Shirvan and Derbent in the

northeast. The Absheron Peninsula in the far east was held by the Shamakhy and Baku Khanates, while south of Javad and Salyan on the western shore of the Caspian Sea was

the Talysh Khanate with its principal town of Lankaran. Modern Azerbaijan, where 90

per cent of the population is Azerbaijani (the second largest group are the Lezgins, who have lived in the region since ancient times), includes several of these khanates, while

others were absorbed by its neighbours.

Following the Russo-Persian wars of 1813 and 1828, when Iran lost most of its

Caucasian territories, firm borders were established between the Russian and Iranian

domains. Historical Azerbaijan was divided, more or less along the line of the Arax

River. The northern part includes all the territories that were once under Iranian rule,

bounded in the east by the Caspian Sea and extending north into Dagestan, embracing much of present-day Georgia and extending westwards towards Turkey. The southern part includes the four provinces of Iranian Azarbaijan (West, East, Ardabil and

Zanjan), bounded to the north by the Arax River.

The surviving historical Azerbaijan embroideries presented in this book can for the

most part be attributed to the period between the last quarter of the 16th century and the Treaty of Turkmenchay of 1828.

Design sources for Safavid-style silk embroideries

To introduce some of the imagery depicted on the surviving embroideries, I will present a few examples of similar decorative items that may have been contemporaneous.

I have for the most part avoided scenes depicted in Iranian paintings because, while

these may have been the original sources, I believe that the embroideries were more

directly inspired by other decorative arts which are more likely to have been seen by the embroiderers than the original manuscripts in which these paintings appeared.1

Similarly, while the domestic embroiderers may have seen kindred patterns on

earlier ceramic tiles,2 it is unlikely that most of them would have had access to these chap ter 4

4.1

s a fav i d - s t y l e e m br oi de r i e s

51

4.12 Peacocks and animals in

quarter of the 16th century, although it may be older. The pattern strongly suggests

Azerbaijan, 1575–1600(?). Silk

better rendering of peacocks on a Tabriz carpet than on the famous example from

arabesque. Possibly Tabriz region, embroidery on drawn thread cotton, 90 × 123 cm. Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, T.5-1961

that the weaver was looking at a Tabriz carpet of the early 16th century, and there is no Mantes Cathedral, now in the Louvre.43 However, on the Mantes carpet there are only

traces of the spiral arabesques so prevalent in the early Tabriz carpets, whereas the

Anhalt carpet in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (4.8), which also has

colourful confronting peacocks, is full of them. In this textile, the warps and wefts on the embroidered parts have been drawn together, gathered and wrapped with silk to

create a net-like background. This is rare on Azerbaijan embroideries but not unheard

of. This technique is often associated with Greek embroideries, in particular from the island of Levkas, but these are worked on linen whereas the Azerbaijani embroideries are on cotton foundations.

Mounted falconers

A Safavid lampas textile, probably made at the end of the 16th century, was acquired three centuries later by Fredrik Martin in Constantinople and now belongs to the Swedish National Museums in Stockholm.44 The pattern has rows of mounted

4.12

falconers, each row diagonally offset and changing direction. The horses are elegantly

conceived and the riders, who lean forward, wear a particular form of hat. Perhaps a

Group 2: Tabriz region?

similar silk inspired an embroidery that was published by Martin as being in the

surviving embroideries from historical Azerbaijan. This region has always contained

alongside two types of tree, cypresses predominating, and alternate horsemen wear

The embroideries I attribute to the wide region of Tabriz represent the largest group of

Victoria and Albert Museum in 1899, although this also features standing figures

the largest number of Azerbaijani people—some 40 per cent (around 30 million) of the

different hats.45 The greater complexity of this pattern may suggest a slightly earlier

the country. More importantly, the embroideries of Tabriz were clearly especially

16th century. The central pattern is laid out horizontally, but the figures in the border

population of present-day Iran are Azerbaijani, most of whom live in the northwest of

date than the woven silk, although I provisionally place both in the last quarter of the

treasured from generation to generation and it is they, more than other types, that

are all viewed from the centre outwards.

several examples can be directly traced back to Tabriz. They tend to be more finely

twill-woven lampas silk in Brussels,46 although on the latter the horsemen all wear the

all over western Iran from the 17th century onwards.

the century are noticeably absent. Also relevant is a lampas with mounted falconer and

Confronting peacocks in a spiral arabesque

which Phyllis Ackerman placed in the 16th century and her Tabriz-Yazd group.47

came onto the western market from the last quarter of the 19th century onwards:

embroidered and many are lined or re-lined and edged with materials that were used

One of the oldest and best of the Tabriz embroideries (4.12) once belonged to Louis

A more direct comparison can be made between the Martin embroidery and a

same hat and all face backwards, and the tall cypresses that appear so often earlier in

standing attendants in the National Museum in Tehran, exhibited in London in 1931,

Another of this design group is an embroidery formerly in the collection of the shrine

Clarke, former director of the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, to whom he

at al-Najaf (4.13). Identical mounted falconers wearing striped turbans and separated

Burlington House Exhibition of Persian Art in London in 1931. I attribute it to the last

border, but orientated diagonally; the border stripe is composed of an elongated

bequeathed his collection. It was one of two exceptional embroideries he lent to the

chap ter 4

by a curved tree are arranged in offset rows. The field pattern is repeated in the primary

s a fav i d - s t y l e e m br oi de r i e s

67

4.12 Peacocks and animals in

quarter of the 16th century, although it may be older. The pattern strongly suggests

Azerbaijan, 1575–1600(?). Silk

better rendering of peacocks on a Tabriz carpet than on the famous example from

arabesque. Possibly Tabriz region, embroidery on drawn thread cotton, 90 × 123 cm. Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, T.5-1961

that the weaver was looking at a Tabriz carpet of the early 16th century, and there is no Mantes Cathedral, now in the Louvre.43 However, on the Mantes carpet there are only

traces of the spiral arabesques so prevalent in the early Tabriz carpets, whereas the

Anhalt carpet in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (4.8), which also has

colourful confronting peacocks, is full of them. In this textile, the warps and wefts on the embroidered parts have been drawn together, gathered and wrapped with silk to

create a net-like background. This is rare on Azerbaijan embroideries but not unheard

of. This technique is often associated with Greek embroideries, in particular from the island of Levkas, but these are worked on linen whereas the Azerbaijani embroideries are on cotton foundations.

Mounted falconers

A Safavid lampas textile, probably made at the end of the 16th century, was acquired three centuries later by Fredrik Martin in Constantinople and now belongs to the Swedish National Museums in Stockholm.44 The pattern has rows of mounted

4.12

falconers, each row diagonally offset and changing direction. The horses are elegantly

conceived and the riders, who lean forward, wear a particular form of hat. Perhaps a

Group 2: Tabriz region?

similar silk inspired an embroidery that was published by Martin as being in the

surviving embroideries from historical Azerbaijan. This region has always contained

alongside two types of tree, cypresses predominating, and alternate horsemen wear

The embroideries I attribute to the wide region of Tabriz represent the largest group of

Victoria and Albert Museum in 1899, although this also features standing figures

the largest number of Azerbaijani people—some 40 per cent (around 30 million) of the

different hats.45 The greater complexity of this pattern may suggest a slightly earlier

the country. More importantly, the embroideries of Tabriz were clearly especially

16th century. The central pattern is laid out horizontally, but the figures in the border

population of present-day Iran are Azerbaijani, most of whom live in the northwest of

date than the woven silk, although I provisionally place both in the last quarter of the

treasured from generation to generation and it is they, more than other types, that

are all viewed from the centre outwards.

several examples can be directly traced back to Tabriz. They tend to be more finely

twill-woven lampas silk in Brussels,46 although on the latter the horsemen all wear the

all over western Iran from the 17th century onwards.

the century are noticeably absent. Also relevant is a lampas with mounted falconer and

Confronting peacocks in a spiral arabesque

which Phyllis Ackerman placed in the 16th century and her Tabriz-Yazd group.47

came onto the western market from the last quarter of the 19th century onwards:

embroidered and many are lined or re-lined and edged with materials that were used

One of the oldest and best of the Tabriz embroideries (4.12) once belonged to Louis

A more direct comparison can be made between the Martin embroidery and a

same hat and all face backwards, and the tall cypresses that appear so often earlier in

standing attendants in the National Museum in Tehran, exhibited in London in 1931,

Another of this design group is an embroidery formerly in the collection of the shrine

Clarke, former director of the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, to whom he

at al-Najaf (4.13). Identical mounted falconers wearing striped turbans and separated

Burlington House Exhibition of Persian Art in London in 1931. I attribute it to the last

border, but orientated diagonally; the border stripe is composed of an elongated

bequeathed his collection. It was one of two exceptional embroideries he lent to the

chap ter 4

by a curved tree are arranged in offset rows. The field pattern is repeated in the primary

s a fav i d - s t y l e e m br oi de r i e s

67

Embroideries in continuation of the earlier style

A progression can be plotted in this type of embroidery, which it is tempting to

associate with the passage of time. Examples with slightly more simplified drawing,

more stylised renderings and less well-proportioned compositions may be indicative of a slightly later date, in the second and third quarters of the 17th century. A small

embroidery in the collection of Ralph and Linda Kaffel has a circular cusped medallion in the centre, large cartouches with lobed sides and pointed ends on each main axis

and eight-pointed stars in each corner (4.28). The medallion has a cypress above a fish pond and flowering trees with a seated figure and a standing serving figure on a red

ground, the cartouches have a rider on a spotted horse among foliage on blue, and the

corner stars have a man attacking a wild beast on red. Seated figures and standing creatures alternate in the narrow border.

A tiny fragment of an embroidery worked on an indigo-dyed cotton tabby weave, of

which just a pointed cartouche survives, is in the Hermitage, St Petersburg.60

A horseman (presumably a falconer) set among flowering stems against a red

4.28

4.27 Lions attacking deer in medallions with animals in

cartouches. Possibly Garadagh

region, Azerbaijan, 1650–1675. Silk embroidery in surface darning on plain-weave cotton, 105 × 127 cm.

Private collection, Munich

4.28 Princely figures in medallion with horsemen in cartouches.

Possibly Garadagh region, Azerbaijan, 1625–1650. Silk embroidery in surface darning on plain-weave cotton,

53 × 56 cm. Ralph and Linda Kaffel Collection, California

background is seated on a handsome saddle upon a colourful horse cover atop a green

horse. Clearly even this tiny fragment was considered sufficiently precious to preserve over the centuries.

Large and small red eight-pointed-star medallions alternate with pointed blue

cartouches in an embroidery in a private collection in Munich (4.27). The large stars

depict a lion biting the back of a deer, with two other small animals and foliage. The

smaller stars have a fish confronting a large leaf, and the cartouche contains a lion in foliage. The negative space in the background is reminiscent of cross-shaped and pointed Iranian tilework.

A similar composition of eight-pointed stars and pointed cartouches that may

represent a shift towards more angular geometric drawing is found on an embroidery in the Mardjani Collection, Moscow. In this, hexagonal cartouches in the border

contain a mounted falconer against a red background and alternate with smaller cartouches with a single spinning motif on blue.

An embroidery with a diagonal composition of repeating pointed ogives with

flame-like surrounds in the field and animals in the border is in the Musées Royaux d’Art et d’Histoire, Brussels (4.29). The field design is reminiscent of some mid-16th-

century Ottoman lampas-woven silks from Bursa, as well as late-16th- and early-17th-

century Ottoman embroideries from Epirus. Irregularly shaped cartouches and

medallions alternate in the borders, the cartouches containing one animal and the 4.27

chap ter 4

medallions another, possibly a deer. s a fav i d - s t y l e e m br oi de r i e s

81

Embroideries in continuation of the earlier style

A progression can be plotted in this type of embroidery, which it is tempting to

associate with the passage of time. Examples with slightly more simplified drawing,

more stylised renderings and less well-proportioned compositions may be indicative of a slightly later date, in the second and third quarters of the 17th century. A small

embroidery in the collection of Ralph and Linda Kaffel has a circular cusped medallion in the centre, large cartouches with lobed sides and pointed ends on each main axis

and eight-pointed stars in each corner (4.28). The medallion has a cypress above a fish pond and flowering trees with a seated figure and a standing serving figure on a red

ground, the cartouches have a rider on a spotted horse among foliage on blue, and the

corner stars have a man attacking a wild beast on red. Seated figures and standing creatures alternate in the narrow border.

A tiny fragment of an embroidery worked on an indigo-dyed cotton tabby weave, of

which just a pointed cartouche survives, is in the Hermitage, St Petersburg.60

A horseman (presumably a falconer) set among flowering stems against a red

4.28

4.27 Lions attacking deer in medallions with animals in

cartouches. Possibly Garadagh

region, Azerbaijan, 1650–1675. Silk embroidery in surface darning on plain-weave cotton, 105 × 127 cm.

Private collection, Munich

4.28 Princely figures in medallion with horsemen in cartouches.

Possibly Garadagh region, Azerbaijan, 1625–1650. Silk embroidery in surface darning on plain-weave cotton,

53 × 56 cm. Ralph and Linda Kaffel Collection, California

background is seated on a handsome saddle upon a colourful horse cover atop a green

horse. Clearly even this tiny fragment was considered sufficiently precious to preserve over the centuries.

Large and small red eight-pointed-star medallions alternate with pointed blue

cartouches in an embroidery in a private collection in Munich (4.27). The large stars

depict a lion biting the back of a deer, with two other small animals and foliage. The

smaller stars have a fish confronting a large leaf, and the cartouche contains a lion in foliage. The negative space in the background is reminiscent of cross-shaped and pointed Iranian tilework.

A similar composition of eight-pointed stars and pointed cartouches that may

represent a shift towards more angular geometric drawing is found on an embroidery in the Mardjani Collection, Moscow. In this, hexagonal cartouches in the border

contain a mounted falconer against a red background and alternate with smaller cartouches with a single spinning motif on blue.

An embroidery with a diagonal composition of repeating pointed ogives with

flame-like surrounds in the field and animals in the border is in the Musées Royaux d’Art et d’Histoire, Brussels (4.29). The field design is reminiscent of some mid-16th-

century Ottoman lampas-woven silks from Bursa, as well as late-16th- and early-17th-

century Ottoman embroideries from Epirus. Irregularly shaped cartouches and

medallions alternate in the borders, the cartouches containing one animal and the 4.27

chap ter 4

medallions another, possibly a deer. s a fav i d - s t y l e e m br oi de r i e s

81

plat e 2 7

Embroidery fragment Late 18th century

Silk embroidery, surface darning on the diagonal on

cotton, with pulled thread work, bias-cut border of Safavid woven silk, 45.5 × 46.5 cm. V&A, 258-1884

The complete pink octagon enclosing a light-

The faded pink in the woven silk border, with

blue eight-pointed star probably marks the

small birds on a floral meander stem, is probably

has four attached curled hooks similar to the

fugitive. The red details in the embroidery itself

century, Caucasian rugs. They form part of an

but the pink appears to be safflower. The patterns

centre of the original embroidery. Each octagon pinwheel device found on many, mostly 19th

endless repeat, which includes pointed yellow

cruciform motifs and dark-blue hexagonal

safflower (Shibayama et al.), which is highly

are clearly dyed with a different and faster colour, of these silk borders with floral or animal repeats were woven diagonally, so that they could be cut

cartouches enclosing double arrow heads.

on the bias to bind the curved edges of silk coats

Chinese trefoil which occurs so often in

many centres but, according to Arthur Upham

These arrows are probably derived from the the arts of Islam. The overall design is

reminiscent of the format found on panels of decorative tiles.

and jackets. Patterned bands were produced in Pope, this diagonally woven type ‘seems to be

peculiar to Kashan’ (Pope, 1938–39, pp. 2128 and

p. 2142, also p. 2206 and pl. 1106c). p.o.

189