TURKISH RUGS

Author(s): Daniel Walker

Source: Bulletin (St. Louis Art Museum) , 1988 SUMMER, New Series, Vol. 18, No. 4,
TURKISH RUGS (1988 SUMMER), pp. 1-35
Published by: St. Louis Art Museum

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/40716259

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 TURKISH RUGS

Daniel Walker

THE SAINT LOUIS ART MUSEUM 1988 SUMMER BULLETIN

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New Series, Volume XVIII, Number 4
The Bulletin of The Saint Louis Art
Museum is published semi-annually.
The subscription price is $8 per year,
postpaid. Members of The Friends of
The Saint Louis Art Museum receive
the Bulletin free of charge. Back issues
are available through The Saint Louis
Art Museum, Forest Park, St. Louis,
Missouri 63IIO.

Editor: Mary Ann Steiner

Designer: Jon S. Cournoyer
Production: James Podolski
© The Saint Louis Art Museum 1988

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Foreword

The previous Bulletin was a most Further, a generous gift established the
successful variation from our usual McDonnell Textile Gallery, completed
format. To celebrate the reopening in 1987, thus providing additional
of the West Wing, a Bulletin devoted gallery space for these masterpieces.
to that project and the history of the Now generations who have never ex-
1904 Cass Gilbert structure was pub- perienced the blaze of color, intricate
lished. And with the reopening, we pattern, lustrous fiber, and bold fields
recognized a wealth of collections of can enjoy objects from one of the
Museum objects awaited research greatest American collectors of
and display. Oriental rugs, James F. Ballard.

What more fitting way to make the We thank Daniel Walker for his scru-
long-awaited reopening of the western tiny and description of these rugs. This
galleries than to publish a portion of publication, which has been in process
the ancient and Islamic collection? since 1985, has been generously sup-
For those who regularly visited the ported with funds from the Missouri
Museum 40 years ago, many galleries Arts Council, a state agency, and the
were illuminated with the colorful National Endowment for the Arts,
flourish of Near Eastern rugs. The a federal agency.
last time these objects were seen in
Sidney M. Goldstein
any regular exhibition was nearly Associate Director
20 years ago.

We asked Daniel Walker, a specialist

in textiles who is the former Curator
of Ancient, Near Eastern and Far East-
ern Art at the Cincinnati Art Museum,
and currently Curator of Islamic Art at
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, to
write a Bulletin on our collection of
Islamic carpets. He promptly agreed,
knowing our holdings from the litera-
ture and objects we had loaned to
major exhibitions. After his first visit
he made a counterproposal, focusing
the publication on our primary
strength, Turkish rugs. What more
fitting way to honor James F. Ballard,
whose gifts are published here? Turk-
ish rugs were one of the great strengths
of his collection, and we are grateful
that he was moved to give a compre-
hensive group to The Saint Louis Art
Museum. For those in the community
who have not had the opportunity to
enjoy these objects, the West Wing
galleries now provide a space for
rotating installations of these rugs.

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 Introduction

In 1904, a spectacle took place in

St. Louis. Five brothers of the Benguiat
family, all dealers in oriental rugs and
textiles, had emigrated from Smyrna in
western Turkey to Europe. The most
successful of the brothers was Vitali,
known as the Pasha. Vitali Benguiat
came to New York in 1898 and estab-
lished a business in collaboration
with the American Art Association,
predecessor of the art auction house
Sotheby-Parke-Bernet. He organized a
series of sales of oriental rugs and tex-
tiles for the AAA, which proved to be
an excellent outlet for his high quality
merchandise. The oldest Benguiat
brother, Ephraim, who had come to
America before Vitali, achieved a dif-
ferent kind of distinction in St. Louis,
amusingly described in Wesley Town-
er'sbook, The Elegant Auctioneers:
Ephraim, when he came to America, had first
tried Boston, then the 1893 World's Columbian
Exposition in Chicago, then San Francisco. In
all these places, the citizens were able to con-
tain their enthusiasm for Turkish carpets, Egyp-
tian mummy cloths, and the hand-me-down
wardrobes of sultans' harems. But in San Fran- Figure 1 . The artroom in James Ballard's home around 1915.
cisco Ephraim acquired one inestimable patron:
Mrs. Phoebe A. Hearst, mother of William
A far more lasting legacy of Oriental Ballard's limited notes on provenance
Randolph, and like her son, a pushover for
almost any kind of negotiable refinement. rugs was left to St. Louis with James indicate that he did not work with just
Ballard's gift of 69 rugs to the City Art
Mrs. Hearst, to her lasting sorrow, loaned Ephraim one dealer. He bought from many
$85,000 to install himself and his antiquities Museum
in a in 1929. Ballard was a suc- sources, apparently trusting his own
grand pavilion at the Louisiana Purchase Expo-
cessful wholesale drug manufacturer judgment in making acquisitions. He
sition of 1904; and for a fleeting summer on the
in St. Louis. The Papers of the James F. purchased at least one carpet (No. 6)
fairgrounds at Saint Louis, opposite the Palace
Ballard Rug Collection, donated to Thefrom one of the Benguiat sales at the
of Forestry, Fish, and Game, a murky enterprise
came into being called the Benguiat Palace of Saint Louis Art Museum by Ballard's American Art Association. Early in his
Ancient Art.
granddaughter, shed little light on collecting life he seems to have had an
An 'Art Portfolio' (price $ 1 , though Ephraim'sBallard's personal life and collecting active relationship with Liberty's, a
name was misspelled on the cover) describedhabits, beyond revealing that he trav- shop in London specializing in textiles,
the contents and importuned fairgoers to gazeeled several hundred thousand miles
carpets, and furnishings. Liberty's
in wonder on 'rare works of every art.' So rare
and numerous were the carpets, embroideries, and visited 42 countries in his quest had a carpet department which was
and Passover dishes that 'a million dollars for rugs. By 1925, Ballard had sailed headed by A. E. King from 1905 to
probably would not buy them,' the rhapsodic to London 35 times. He had become 1927, a period that virtually parallels
guidebook hinted. Visitors willing to squanderinterested in Oriental rugs in New York Ballard's years of collecting. King is
the admission charge could see the 'Original
Historical Damascus Palace' (a palace within a
about 1905, when he noticed in a shop said to have traveled with James Bal-
window a rug whose colors enchanted
palace, as it were), which Ephraim had salvaged lard on occasion, and he is credited
from the Turkish pavilion when the Chicago him. After he purchased this rug, many with helping to arrange the rugs in the
fair was dismantled. And among the shadows others followed. By 1912, Ballard hadphotograph of Ballard's gallery. In a
of 'the tout ensemble' intrepid fairgoers could
added to his home at 4420 Washington photograph of 1910 or 1920, the carpet
behold 'the Collector' himself, or at least that
part of him which was visible beyond the dark Boulevard a fire-proof and burglar- department of Liberty's looks almost
expanse of his long, untrammeled beard - aproof gallery (Figure 1). The collec- the same as Ballard's special room.
man all eyes and nose and forehead - as he tion was already large enough to fill
reclined among the divans, looking into 'the the gallery.
mosaic fountain, which had reflected the smiles
of Syrian women 600 years [ago].' Not many
did. The sheriff was the most frequent visitor.
Only after Vitali had come to the rescue with 'Excerpt from The Elegant Auctioneers by
$ 10,000 would the Saint Louis authorities Wesley Towner. Copyright © 1970 by the
release the Collector and his rare works. . . Estate of Wesley Towner. Reprinted by
from the clutches of the unpaid builder of permission of Hill and Wang, a division
the Benguiat Palace of Ancient Art1. of Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Inc.
/.

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The three greatest American collectors
of Oriental rugs in this century have
been James Ballard, George Hewitt
Myers, and Joseph McMullan. Myers's

r BlackSea ' USSR / ^

interests lay particularly in classical
material of the fifteenth, sixteenth, and
seventeenth centuries; his collection,
forming the backbone of his Textile
Museum in Washington, D.C., is rich
in study material and display pieces.
Joseph McMullan's large collection, 4 ) ):aas-•Mudjur
™Z •Mudjur ^^} ( ""V(K 'K
I^Yomut
now chiefly in The Metropolitan Mu- <¿> • Ladik "1 Karabagh j k Tribes
seum, New York, covers a wide field ^^' «Konya CT S^
but is particularly strong in Turkish V_/-n^O Yuruk Tribes ' 'J )Tribes
village and nomadic pieces. McMullan r^^^-s
is often counted as among the first to
recognize and appreciate the bold, ., -,*- o /J SYRIA / I
masculine appeal of such rugs, al-
though Ballard had fine examples ear-
lier and McMullan was familiar with
them. James Ballard's collection was
divided into three parts. In 1922, he
^Sy^£r^} iraq I irán
presented The Metropolitan Museum (' V / ' ^'VX /S
R.Nile'' ^ Bakhtiari
X k Tribes
with 129 rugs of many different types.
His 1929 gift to City Art Museum of 69
( ''/f V /^T^^^A Afshar Tribes
rugs included 47 Turkish pieces, with
an evident concentration of the ma-
terial Ballard valued most. Other rugs
from Ballard's collection were passed
on to his daughter, Nellie Ballard White,
EGÏT ' ' s„™ A^ k--
after his death in 1931 . Many of her
rugs were given to The Saint Louis Art Figure 2. Major weaving centers in Turkey and the Middle East.
Museum in 1972.

Although both men collected widely, Early Turkish rugs, those dating from From at least the sixteenth century on,
Ballard and McMullan were particu- the thirteenth to the seventeenth cen- a popular design featured an arch at
larly fond of Turkish rugs, mostly turies, favor patterns which appear to one end of the field of relatively small
those from Anatolia (Asia Minor) repeat infinitely. The pattern often rugs. The arch is thought to define the
(Figure 2). Some areas produced rugs consists of two different units of de- niche which in the mosque is an archi-
in only one fashion; weaving in the sign arranged in alternating, staggered tectural indicator for the direction of
Caucasus Mountains, for example, was rows. The infinite repeat is implied by prayer - the direction of Mecca - for
conducted as a cottage industry within the interruption that the border im- the faithful of Islam. Prayer rugs pro-
the villages, while the Turkoman rugs poses; a finite design would fit the vided the faithful with a portable ver-
of Soviet Turkestan reflect a nomadic space defined by the border. Even sion of the clean place required for
heritage. Other areas, like Iran and when a central focus is incorporated, prayer. Most prayer rugs have a single
Turkey, produced rugs in multiple which was the taste of the Persian and niche and thus are designed for indi-
levels of sophistication- nomadic, Turkish court designers, the medal- vidual devotions. Larger versions exist
village, city, and court. A complex lions in Turkish carpets are part of a with rows of niches; these are intended
picture emerges, imperfectly under- larger scheme whose repetition ad for congregational prayer in mosques
stood, and generalizations about char- infinitum is still implied. The "Turk- and need make no allowance for porta-
acteristic features are more difficult ishness" of such patterns is verified bility. Prayer rugs were woven in most
to make. Nevertheless, Turkish rugs by their popularity among Turkoman Islamic weaving areas, but the design
have certain traits which appear with weavers in Soviet Turkestan, weavers achieved special popularity in Turkey;
a frequency that warrants some gen- whose Central Asian ancestors may why this is so is not understood.
eral observations. have been closely akin to those who
emigrated to Anatolia in the eleventh
and twelfth centuries.

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Early examples of luxury goods de-
signed by Ottoman court designers
and woven on silk foundations make
the architectural origins of the design
apparent: the arch is supported on
columns with proper bases and capi-
tals, and a mosque lamp appears to
hang in the niche. Among the rugs
given to The Metropolitan Museum by
Ballard in 1922 was a superb example
of the court production (Figure 3),
perhaps now the most famous Turkish
prayer rug in existence. Prayer rugs
following court prototypes were pro-
duced in great quantities and varieties
in Anatolian towns and villages during
the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nine-
teenth centuries. These Turkish prayer
rugs particularly appealed to James
Ballard who came to possess many
examples: at one time he owned at
least 33 prayer rugs from Ghiordes
alone, not to mention the many pieces
from Ladik, Kula, Milas, and Konya.

In general, Turkish rugs are made en-

tirely of wool and are knotted with
the Turkish or symmetrical knot. The
principal exception to this is the Otto-
man court rugs of the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries, in which silk
and cotton were used along with wool
and in which the Persian or asymmetri-
cal knot was employed. They are col-
ored with fully saturated primary and
secondary hues, with brick red, bright
yellow, and dark blue as the predomi-
nant colors.

This publication celebrates The Saint

Louis Art Museum's fine collection of
Turkish rugs, otherwise known mainly
from publications now long out of
print. Together with the reopening of
the Museum's West Wing, in which
rugs from the permanent collection
are displayed, it announces the institu-
tion's desire to share its treasures with Figure 3. Near Eastern, Turkish. Prayer Rug, ca. 1600. Silk and wool;
the public. Of the 25 rugs described 172.7 x 127 cm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The James F. Ballard
and illustrated herein, 22 came to the Collection, Gift of James F. Ballard, 1922.
Museum with the James Ballard gift of
1929. The other three were donated by
Nellie Ballard White in 1972, and two
of these had come from her father's
collection. This presentation thus pays
due respect to the Ballard Collection.

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A few comments are necessary about For an explanation of unfamiliar terms,
the entries which follow. The names particularly those found in the techni-
assigned to the rugs are derived fromcal analyses, please see the Glossary at
different sources. Some - Lotto, the back of this publication. For fur-
Holbein - are the names of Europeanther information and for a general
painters who depicted rugs of that review of the history and techniques of
type in their work. Others are the carpet weaving, the reader is referred
names of towns or districts in whose to Oriental Rugs by Walter B. Denny
(New York: Cooper-Hewitt Museum,
proximity rugs of that type are thought
1979). This useful book also contains
to have been woven - Ghiordes, Konya,
etc. One name - Transylvanian - suggestions for further reading, a glos-
reflects the location where many sary, and a brief discussion of such
pieces ofthat type have been found, practical topics as cleaning and repairs.
although they may not necessarily I wish to thank several Saint Louis
have been produced there. Other
Art Museum staff members. James D.
terms - prayer, star, medallion,
Burke, Director, has supported this
compartment - describe principal
project from the beginning. Sidney M.
features of the field design. Where
Goldstein, Associate Director, origi-
they have entered popular usage, An-
nally proposed the idea for this Bulle-
glicized versions of place names are
tin issue and provided encouragement
given. The entries have been written
and considerable practical assistance
for general readers, but technical anal-
throughout the examination and writ-
yses have been included for the benefit
ing process. Mary Ann Steiner, Director
of specialists whose work must hinge
of Publications, has carefully brought
upon such "fingerprints." The author
the manuscript into its published form;
is responsible for all technical analyses
and Zoe Annis-Perkins, textile conser-
except that for No. 15, which was
vator, has assisted me in examining and
done by Zoe Annis-Perkins, textile
conservator at The Saint Louis Art
analyzing the rugs and made pleasant
what can be a fairly tedious process.
Museum. Dimensions are given with
Ultimately, though, James Ballard gets
length first; rugs were measured along
the greatest thanks for leaving so many
their center lines; width includes side
of his prized rugs to a city and an insti-
finish, but length does not include
tution which appreciate his legacy.
plain weave bands or warp fringe.
The number and redundancy of pub- Daniel Walker
lications have necessitated the use Curator of Islamic Art
of abbreviated titles; a full listing The Metropolitan Museum of Art
of publications follows the text.

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1 . Small-Pattern Holbein Rug
Late fifteenth or early sixteenth century
194.5 x 120 cm. (76V2 x 47V4 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 106:1929

The Portrait of George Gisze, painted

by Hans Holbein the Younger in 1532
and now in the Gemäldegalerie, West
Berlin, shows the merchant behind a
table. On the table are a Turkish rug,
a vase of flowers, and various imple-
ments used in the conduct of his busi-
ness transactions. The field design of
the rug can be discerned despite the
strong perspective: rows of geometri-
cally-drawn octagons with knotted
outlines alternate with rows of
diamond-shaped medallions formed
from interlaced arabesques. The bor-
der design consists of a band of geo-
metric interlace based on an angular
Arabic script. Except for the blue
ground, the rug depicted by Holbein is
very similar to the red-ground Ballard
rug in St. Louis.

Although Holbein depicted a rug with

this design only once in his paintings,
his name has come to be attached to
this particular field design, as it also
has become associated with another
design involving larger motifs. Small-
pattern Holbein rugs appear in many
European paintings from about the
mid-fifteenth to the mid-sixteenth
century Thereafter, they appear spo-
radically into the seventeenth century,
suggesting continued usage, if not
actual production. The design of the
border of the St. Louis rug appears in
paintings dating between the 1490s
and the 1540s.

There are at least 75 known exam-

ples of small-pattern Holbein rugs,
the majority in European collections.
Of the 66 whose color schemes are
known (the remainder are known only
from black and white illustration or
from textual reference) 26 have fields
in two colors - red with dark green,
Provenance Technical Data
green, or dark blue. The two colors are
Kennedy, Berlin; James F. Ballard, St. Louis
Warp: Z2S ivory wool, alternates slightly
used in alternation, forming square depressed
fields with the octagons at the centers,Exhibitions
Weft: Z wool, red-orange and pale purple, x 2,
resulting in a distinctive rhythm. The 1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute lazy lines
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Pile: Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 35 V. x 27 H. = 945
other 40 rugs have fields of a single 1947 Chicago. The Art Institute of Chicago per sq. dm. (63 per sq. in.)
solid color - blue-green, green, blue, 1950 Memphis. Brooks Memorial Gallery
Sides: single warp, weft-wrapped, overcast with
or red. Only nine rugs have the red 1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum orange wool
field of the Ballard rug. Curiously, no 1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum Ends: top has few rows of plain weave band
red-ground small-pattern Holbein rugs 1983 London. Hayward Gallery with orange wool wefts; bottom cut
are known in European paintings; it is Bibliography Colors (8): light brick red, dark brick red
Catalogue JFB, no. 78, lllus. (abrash to mostly pale purple), orange, pale
possible that the taste for this particu-
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XIV. yellow, medium green, dark green-blue, light
lar aesthetic lay not in western but in blue, ivory
Antique Oriental Rugs, no. 62, illus.
eastern Europe, where several red- Eastern Carpet in the Western World, p. 55, no. Condition: wear throughout, through founda-
ground examples remain today. 10, illus. tion in places; small areas of repair

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2. Lotto Rug
First half of the sixteenth century
171 x 111.5 cm. (67V4X 44 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballarci 104: 1929

The field pattern of this small rug is

made up of two units of design: heav-
ily stylized octagons and cross-shaped
devices whose outlines tuck in and
project out in elaborate ways. These
are shown in brilliant contrast in yel-
low on a brick red field, standard for
the type. The stylization of these units
and their dense packing make them
difficult to discern, but, like the two
units of the small-pattern Holbeins,
they are arranged in staggered, alter-
nating rows. The infinite nature of the
pattern created by these rows of units
is implied by the cutting or overlap-
ping by the borders of the pattern
units in the field which is, in this
case, not quite symmetrical.

Numerous examples of this type of

rug exist, and versions are illustrated in
Italian, Portuguese, English, and north-
ern European paintings ranging in date
from 1516 until at least the early eigh-
teenth century. The Venetian painter
Lorenzo Lotto pictured such rugs
twice in the 1540s; his name has
come to be associated with the
design.

The earliest paintings in the series

show rugs with interlace borders
similar to those characteristic of small-
pattern Holbein rugs, suggesting a
continuity or even an overlap in the
production of the two types. The main
border of this Lotto differs from that of
the Holbein (see No. 1), mainly in that
the interlace units remain open at the
top, with triangular '"flags" prominent.
This border is seen in four paintings
ranging in date from 1516 (the earliest
painting of a Lotto) to 1561 , thus pro-
viding approximate dates of manufac-
ture. Border designs of Lotto carpets
depicted in seventeenth century paint-
1922 Minneapolis. Minneapolis Institute of Arts Technical Data
ings are of totally different types.
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute Warp: Z2S ivory wool, ends dyed orange-red,
Lottos were made in a range of sizes, 1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute alternates slightly depressed
1950 Memphis. Brooks Memorial Gallery Weft: Z red-orange wool x 2, lazy lines in field
but the size of the individual pattern and borders
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum
units tends to remain constant. Some 1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum Pile: Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 35 V. x 29 H. =
have field areas so small that not even 1983 London. Hayward Gallery 1015 per sq. dm. (67 '/i per sq. in.)
one full-width pattern unit is shown. Sides: not original
Bibliography Ends: not original
Provenance Hare hxampiesjtü, no. iu, uius. Colors (7): red, yellow, dark brown, dark blue-
Catalogue
Said to have been in a Spanish convent; James F. JFB, no. 74, illus. green, medium blue, dark blue, ivory
Ballard, St. Louis Inaugural JFB, no. 38, illus. Condition: considerable but even wear; small
"JFB Collection," p. 62, illus. patches throughout; worn into pile both
Exhibitions Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XXI (color). ends; missing outer borders
1916 Chicago. Marshall Field & Co. Kurt Erdmann. Seven Hundred Years of Orien-
1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum tal Carpets. Berkeley and Los Angeles: Uni-
1919 Cleveland. Cleveland Museum of Art versity of California, 1970, p. 57, illus. no. 52.
1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum Eastern Carpet in the Western World, p. 08, no.
of Art 31, illus.
9

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3 Lotto Rug
Seventeenth century
198.5 x 119.5 cm. (78 x 47 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 100: 1929

The crisp angularity and tightly

packed nature of this red-ground Lotto
rug gives sharp contrast to the preced-
ing example. The jagged saw-toothed
edges of the triangular parts of the two
design units are the most striking fea-
tures of the so-called kilim style. The
name is appropriately derived from the
sawtoothed edges inherent for techni-
cal reasons in the flatweaves known
as kilims.

Kilim-style Lottos are depicted in

European paintings from the 1530s
on, but representations are particularly
predominant in the seventeenth cen-
tury. The Ballard rug's ragged-palmette
border, a descriptive term which refers
to the ragged edges of the leafy pal-
mette form flanked by knotted vertical
bars, is curiously absent from painted
versions of kilim-style Lottos. It is
found, however, in depictions of other
types of rugs starting in the 1520s and
it is found in other extant examples
of kilim-style Lottos.

Lotto rugs are sometimes treated

as a single group, but there are suffi-
cient technical and stylistic variations
to identify multiple sources of produc-
tion. The Ushak area of western
Anatolia is frequently cited, and Konya
in central Anatolia also has been sug-
gested. The significant number of
kilim-style rugs found in southeastern
Europe indicates that it was a style in
particular favor there. The possibility
that some of these rugs were woven
in southeastern Europe cannot be
discounted.

Provenance Technical Data

Kennedy, Berlin; James F. Ballard, St. Louis
Warp: Z2S ivory wool, alternates slightly
depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z pale orange wool x 2, lazy lines in field
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute and borders
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Pile: Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 35 V x 29 H. =
1947 Chicago. The Art Institute of Chicago 1015 per sq. dm. (67V2 per sq. in.)
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum Sides: not original
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
Ends: top has plain weave band of Z2 wool,
Bibliography warp fringe; bottom has warp fringe only
Jacoby. Sammlung, hg. 83 (detail). Colors (9): red, orange, pale yellow, ecru, dark
Catalogue JFB, no. 68, illus. brown (sometimes black), medium blue,
uimana. ñauara collection, pl. aah.
medium green-blue, ivory
Condition: even wear, small reknotted areas
throughout; dark brown of border palmettes
and some outlining reknotted

10

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4. Compartment Rug
Second half of the sixteenth century
161 x 96.5 cm. (63 Vzx 38 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballarci 110:1929

One of the most puzzling groups

of early rugs are sometimes called
"chessboard" rugs. The group is a
relatively homogeneous one named
for the compartments into which the
field is divided in all but a handful of
examples. Rows of square compart-
ments contain hexagons with internal
designs of trees, rosettes, and other
forms arranged radially around a cen-
tral star. The palette is limited, with
design details usually in several shades
of blue or blue-green against a red
ground.

At least 29 pieces with this compart-

ment arrangement are known. They
vary considerably in size; the number
of hexagons ranges from six to 35. At
least 11 are practically identical, with
three rows of two hexagons. Although
several different border designs appear
on larger format pieces, the small rugs
all have the border seen here, which
consists of cartouches alternating with
medallions. The St. Louis rug has been
reduced in width; originally it would
have had a second column of compart-
ments. Although a partial fourth com-
partment is cut off by the top border,
the rug has not been reduced in
length. The weaver extended the de-
sign to arrive at the required length.

The origin of the compartment rugs,

debated for years, is curious. Some
technical features or elements of de-
sign seem to suggest a close relation-
ship to the Mamluk carpets of Egypt,
while others seem to deny it. The com-
partments themselves, with their trian-
gular corners and octagonal medal- Provenance Technical Data

lions, derive from the secondary James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, alternates very
medallions of Mamluk rugs, but they Exhibitions depressed
Weft: Z, Z2 pale pink wool x 2 or 3 (random)
are employed in a Turkish way. In 1916 Chicago. Marshall Field & Co. Pile: Z2, occasionally Z3 or Z4 wool, Persian
Mamluk designs they fill in finite 1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum knot open to left, 27 V. x 35 H. = 945 per sq.
1919 Cleveland. Cleveland Museum of Art
spaces around the primary medallion; dm. (63 per sq. in.)
1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum Sides: not original
in the compartment rugs they form the of Art
Ends: not original
rows of an infinitely repeating pattern. 1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute
Colors (9): red, pale yellow, dark brown,
Although it is not apparent in the re- 1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute medium blue-green (2), light blue-green,
duced St. Louis rug, the four contigu- 1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum medium blue, dark blue, ivory
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum Condition: ends worn into main border; right
ous corner triangles form diamonds,
rows of which alternate with the octa- border rejoined; numerous patches and
Bibliography
repairs throughout; dark brown very
gons in a manner reminiscent of small- Rare Examples JbB, no. Iz, mus.
corroded
Loan Exhibition JFB, no. 55, illus.
pattern Holbeins and Lottos. The attri- Catalogue IFB, no. 82, illus.
bution is still questionable but Turkey Dimand. Bailara Collection, pl. XV.
is a viable possibility. The group can Kurt Erdmann. Oriental Carpets. Fishguard:
be dated according to when represen- Crosby Press, 1976, fig. 48.
Serare Yetkin. Historical Turkish Carpets.
tations of similar rugs appeared in
Istanbul: Turkiye I§ Bankasi Cultural
European paintings. Publications, 1981, illus. 82.

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5. Star Ushak Rug
Seventeenth century
168 x 104 cm. (66 x 41 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 103:1929

According to documentary sources,

large medallion carpets (of which
No. 7 is a variant type) were woven in
the western Anatolian town of Ushak,
known for carpet weaving since the
fifteenth century. A number of other
carpet designs, including the star me-
dallion pattern of this rug, are found
in pieces which generally have wool,
coloring, specific design elements, and
technical features similar to the medal-
lion Ushaks; these carpets can be as-
signed to the Ushak region as well.
The Star Ushak is named for the
large star-shaped medallions which
alternate with smaller diamond-shaped
units. The two elements are arranged,
alternating in staggered rows, in the
fashion of the earlier Holbein and
Lotto rugs. But the decorative vocabu-
lary of the Ushaks - the medallion
shapes, the arabesque forms filling
them, and the vines and small-scale
floral elements filling the interstices
between the medallions - marks a total
departure from the tradition repre-
sented by the Holbeins, Lottos, and
their predecessors. This abrupt change
often has been attributed to Persian
influence resulting from the capture of
Safavid artists by the Ottomans who
sacked Tabriz in 1514. It recently has
been suggested that, although Persian
influences did indeed play a role, the
transformation actually took place in
the third quarter of the fifteenth
century under court direction.

The earliest Ushaks may thus represent

Ottoman court products in which
cartoons drawn by court artists were of its age, it is an unusually small and Bibliography
used. In the sixteenth and seventeenth
finely woven example. It has been Rare Examples JFB, no. 6, illus.
Catalogue JFB, no. 73, illus.
centuries, a tremendous demand forsuggested that the small Star Ushaks
"JFB Collection", p. 63, illus.
various types of Ushaks developed in were ordered especially for use in Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XVIII.
Transylvanian churches; an example
Europe. The first Star Ushak appears in
Technical Data
a painting of 1534 and representationsonly slightly larger than the St. Louis
Warp: Z2S ivory wool, alternates slightly
continue into the seventeenth century.rug adorns the Black Church of Bra§ov. depressed
The popularity of the star design in the Weft: slight Z orange-red wool x 2, lazy lines in
field and border
west is attested to by the number of Provenance
Pile: Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 55 V. x 39 H. =
examples in paintings, by the apparentHolstein, Berlin; James F. Ballard, St. Louis
2145 per sq. dm. (140 per sq. in.)
quantity exported to Europe, and by Exhibitions Sides: not original
European copies of the design - 1916 Chicago. Marshall Field & Co. Ends: not original
carpets dated 1584 and 1585 at 1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum Colors (10): red, pink, pale yellow, ecru, dark
1919 Cleveland. Cleveland Museum of Art brown, light green, dark blue-green, medium
Bough ton House, Northampton-
1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum blue, dark blue, ivory
shire, England. of Art Condition: reduced on all sides, missing part
of main border and all outer borders; consid-
The St. Louis rug has a well-balanced1922 Minneapolis Institute of Arts
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute erable wear; numerous small repairs
field design and effective coloring. 1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute
Dark blue medallions are set against a 1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum
red ground. Although showing signs 1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum

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6. Variant Star Ushak Rug
Sixteenth century
314 x 229 cm. (123V4 x 90 »A in.)
Gift of James F. Ballarci 98: 1929

This beautiful rug is the only known

version of a particular variant of the
Star Ushak design which features a
single repeated motif, a large lobed
quatrefoil medallion in very dark
blue, with interior arabesques and
floral elements. There is no alternation
of color except in the inner compart-
ment of the medallions. Aside from its
unique design, the rug is characteristi-
cally Ushak in its coloring of blue me-
dallions on a brilliant red field, in its
profusion of diminutive floral ele-
ments scattered across the field be-
tween the medallions, and in its border
design of palmettes and arabesques
arranged in a reciprocal pattern known
in other Ushak pieces.

The carpet has extremely lush, full

pile and striking coloring. It suffers
only from the lack of symmetry in its
design induced by its having been
shortened. All of the top border and
almost half of the bottom border are
half- width pieces from original end
borders, but the other half of the bot-
tom border, with warps differing from
the rest, is from the similar border of
another rug.

This rug is particularly instructive.

Other Ushaks, now worn down nearly
to the foundation, must have once
given an impression similar to this
full-piled example.

Provenance Technical Data

Warp: Z2S wool, ivory but red with occasional
V. and L. Benguiat, New York; James F. Ballarci,
St. Louis white in bottom end border, alternates
slightly depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z orange-red wool x 2, a few Z2S near top
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum of field, lazy lines in field
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
Pile: Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 39 V. x 33 H. =
1983 London. Hayward Gallery 1287 per sq. dm. (85 per sq in.)
Bibliography Sides: not original
American Art Association. The V. and L. Ben- Ends: not original
guiat Private Collection of Rare Old Rugs. Colors (8): red (2), pale yellow, dark brown,
New York, 1925, p. 22. green, medium blue, dark blue, ivory
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XVI (color). Condition: minor repairs throughout; dark
Wesley Towner. "The Pasha and the Magic brown corroded in places; inner minor
borders at ends of field replaced; main end
Carpets, Part I." Halt, 2, No. 3 (1980), p. 185,
fig. 2.
borders were originally end borders, half
Eastern Carpet in the Western World, p. 73, no. width, but part of bottom end main border
40, illus. (2 fragments) is from another rug with similar
border
"The Eastern Carpet in the Western World."
Hali, 6, no. 1 (1983), p. 47, fig. 2 (color).

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7. Variant Medallion Ushak Carpet
Seventeenth or early eighteenth
century
386 x 253.5 cm. (152 x 993A in.)
Gift of Nellie Ballard White 301 : 1972

Perhaps the best-known carpets associ-

ated with Ushak are the Medallion
Ushaks, plentiful in Western paintings
and collections. The design is based on
a repeat pattern of two motifs used in
alternation - a large oval medallion
normally found at the carpet center
and sometimes in partial form at the
ends, and sixteen-pointed star-shaped
medallions usually found halved along
the edges of the field. The arabesques
and floral motifs in the medallions and
the floral tracery and blossoms of the
field between the medallions are simi-
lar to the decoration of other large-
scale Ushak carpets, except that the
floral rinceaux of the field are shown
in monochrome silhouetted against
the ground. Medallion Ushaks are
found with various color arrange-
ments: some have a dark blue ground
and red oval medallion and blue star-
shaped medallions, others have a red
ground and blue medallions, and two
have ivory medallions against a
blue ground.
This interesting variant of the Medal-
lion Ushak type shows red medallions
on a dark blue ground. A relatively
late example, its design is somewhat
squashed and crowded; the reciprocal
triangles of the border have been
blunted, and the quatrefoil arabesque
system within the larger medallions
has stiffened noticeably from earlier
versions. The carpet emphasizes, by
virtue of the relatively large number of
small-scale repeated units, the infinite
nature of such patterning. One won-
ders if such an extensive repeat pat-
tern, unusual for a Medallion Ushak, is
merely a function of late production or
if, in fact, this rug echoes an earlier
design now lost.
Provenance Technical Data
James F. Ballard, St. Louis; Nellie Ballard Warp:
White, Z2S ivory wool, alternates slightly
St. Louis depressed
Weft: Z red-orange wool x 2, lazy lines in field
Exhibitions
Pile: Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 51 V. x 27 H. =
1916 Chicago. Marshall Field & Co. 1377 per sq. dm. (91 per sq. in.)
1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum Sides: not original
1919 Cleveland. Cleveland Museum of Art
Ends: not original
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute Colors (7): red, yellow, dark brown, green,
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute medium to light blue (abrash), dark blue,
Bibliography ivory
Rare Examples JEBK, no. 5, nlus. Condition: top end border replaced to edge of
Catalogue JFB, no. 64, illus. field, so rug may have been reduced; bottom
Twenty NBW, p. 52, no. 18, illus. end outer minor border replaced; sides
restored; extensive repairs and reknotting
throughout, especially around edges; ex-
tensive but fairly even wear; dark brown
corroded

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8. Transylvanian Rug
Seventeenth century
160.5 x 122.5 cm. (63 !A x 48 »A in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 92: 1929

A tremendous wealth of Oriental car-

pets exists today in eastern Europe. In
addition to private and museum collec-
tions, the Protestant churches of Tran-
sylvania, once part of Hungary but
now in Rumania, contain hundreds of
rugs. Whether these rugs represent
local production in the Turkish style or
a class of rugs exported from Turkey to
suit the tastes of the Transylvanian
populace has long been debated. In
the absence of solid evidence for the
former theory, in the presence of doc-
umentary evidence outlining a picture
of importation of great quantities of
Turkish rugs, and in the similarities
between Transylvanian and Turkish
rugs, it seems most likely that these
belong to a class of export weavings
made in various centers in Anatolia.
Some efforts have been made to assign
certain types of these Transylvanian
rugs, as they are called, to specific
sites in Anatolia.

There are several types of rugs in the

Transylvanian churches, of which the
largest single group consists of pieces
resembling this Ballard rug with its red
central field. The designs are basically
symmetrical, with an arch at each end,
but the angular floral tracery in the
field differs slightly from one end to
the other and the standard cartouche
border rarely comes out evenly with
all units complete.

Related Transylvanian rugs have

directional designs of a prayer niche,
the upper part of the field holding
an arch from which is suspended a Provenance Technical Data
mosque lamp. The Ballard rug and Ramsey, Berlin; James F. Ballard, St. LouisWarp: Z2S ivory wool, ends dyed yellow, alter-
many others have a mosque lamp at nates moderately depressed
Exhibitions
each end of the field, suggesting a Weft: orange-red wool, slightly Z-spun, x 2
1916 Chicago. Marshall Field & Co. Pile: mostly Z2, some single Z (especially dark
simple doubling of the conventional 1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum brown and white), Turkish knot, 41 V. x 39 H.
prayer rug design to achieve a symmet- of Art = 1599 per sq. dm. (105 per sq. in.)
rical field design. This may actually 1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute Sides: not original
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Ends: warp fringe
have been the method of the village 1947 Chicago. The Art Institute of Chicago Colors (11): red, dark red, pink, yellow (abrash
weaver, working without the aid of a 1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum
to olive), beige, dark brown, light green, light
cartoon, to achieve a field layout simi- 1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum plum, medium blue, dark blue, ivory
lar to that found in a group of small Condition: entire top edge replaced with a
Bibliography
Ushak rugs. Rare Examples JFB, no. 3, illus. repiled strip running down into center of
Loan ExhibitionJFB, no. 28, illus. field; numerous repairs and rewoven areas;
The earliest depiction of this sort of Catalogue JFB, no. 48, illus. uneven wear, brown pile corroded
Transylvanian rug in a European paint- Dirnand. Ballard Collection, pl. XXIII (color).
ing dates from the 1620s, and this rug cnaries t. Hummel. Moor coverings Used in

may well date from about the same 18th-century America." Irene Emery
Roundtable on Museum Textiles 1975
time.
Proceedings - Imported and Domestic
Textile in 18th-century America. Patricia L.
Fiske, ed. Textile Museum, 1976, pp. 61-93,
fig. 4, p. 80.

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9. Transylvanian Prayer Rug
Late seventeenth or early
eighteenth century
176 x 121 cm (69V4 x 473A in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 113:1929

Among the rugs now housed in Tran-

sylvanian churches are many prayer
rugs, whose field designs incorporate
the arch or niche shape which, in ar-
chitecture, indicates the direction of
prayer for the faithful. One type of
prayer rug is the triple-arched type,
typically featuring three arches sup-
ported by two paired and two single
columns. The columns have proper
capitals and bases and the field is un-
decorated except for the occasional
tulip found along the bottom edge.
Spandrels are found in two designs,
either an ensemble of curved leaves
and rosettes related to the spandrel
design of the preceding example, or
the repeated geometrical units of the
Ballard piece. The panel above the
field contains a crenellated pattern
with tulips and carnations sprouting in
alternation. The main border design
may be one of several: the cusped
medallion type seen here, an ovoid
medallion type, a combination of the
two, or a version with rosettes. A rela-
tively pale palette was the fashion;
many of the rugs in the churches fea-
ture either a white ground or a rather
flat ochre or beige cast.

The eighteenth and nineteenth-cen-

tury prayer rugs should be considered
the provincial weavers' response to th(
great court-designed prayer rugs of the
late sixteenth century. Many of the
same features appear, but in geometri-
cized form. The architectural elements
closely follow court prototypes which
include two triple-arched examples. A
similar but much more elegantly exe-
cuted crenellated panel also appears in
versions from the court designers, as
do tiny flowers flourishing between
the column bases.

An Anatolian triple-arched rug with Provenance Technical Data

the same border design as this white-James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, ends dyed red, alternates
ground Ballard rug appears in a Dutch slightly depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z ivory wool x 2, lazy lines
painting of 1664. It is ironic that a type
1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum Pile: Z, some Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 39 V. x
of rug ostensibly intended for the de- 1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute
35 H. = 1365 per sq. dm. (90 per sq. in.)
vout Muslim to pray on should find 1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Sides: 3 warps overcast (into pile in small darts)
1947 Chicago. The Art Institute of Chicago
such a voracious export market amon^ with medium blue-green and gold wool
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum
non-Muslims in eastern and western Ends: not original
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
Colors (8): red, pink, yellow ochre, gold, dark
Europe. These rugs, often attributed tc
1975 St. Joseph, Missouri. Albrecht Art
brown, medium blue-green, medium blue
Museum
western Anatolia, seem to have been (abrash), ivory
produced in several centers, perhapsBibliography Condition: woven top end first; few minor
even in eastern Europe itself. Catalogue JFB, no. 86, illus. repairs; some dark blue outlining reknotted
Bulletin, p. 66, illus.
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. L.
Antique Oriental Rugs, no. 99, illus.

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10. Transylvanian Prayer Rug
Late seventeenth or early
eighteenth century
181 x 125 cm. (711/4x491/4in.)
Gift of James F. Ballarci 82: 1929

This Ballarci rug represents another

type of prayer rug favored in eastern
Europe. Its muted colors, red field,
and design features are found in a
stiffer and less elegant version in the
Transylvanian church at Ra§nov. The
Ra§nov rug bears the embroidered date
1736, which may be the date it was
given to the church.

Designs seen in court prayer rugs lin-

ger here in the bulging shape of the
arch and in the elegant tracery in the
spandrels. But the columns have disap-
peared, giving the niche far less archi-
tectural significance, and the mosque
lamp has been transformed into a floral
motif, suspended decoratively but
without obvious meaning. The substi-
tution of an Ushak-inspired border of
scrolling vines, palmettes and blos-
soms for the court-designed version
incorporating curved lancet leaves,
tulips, and carnations does not mean
that the Ballard rug is necessarily fur-
ther removed in time from the court
prototypes than similar rugs with a
version of the other border (as seen
in No. 12). Rather, it suggests that
the provincial weaver felt no qualms
about combining patterns drawn from
different sources; there was no correct
combination except what was pleasing
to the eye.

Provenance Technical Data

Holstein, Berlin; James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, ends dyed pink, alter-
nates moderately depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z wool, red-orange (undyed brindle at
1922 San Francisco. San Francisco Art
top), x 2, lazy lines
Association
Pile: slight Z wool, Turkish knot, 35 V. x 35 H.
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute = 1225 per sq. dm. (81 per sq. in.)
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Sides: not original
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum Ends: not original
1972 St. Louis. The St. Louis Art Museum
Colors (8): red, pale green-yellow, pale ochre,
1974 Washington, D.C. Textile Museum light brown, dark brown, light blue, dark
blue, ivory
Bibliography
Condition: extensive areas of reknotting in
Catalogue JFB, no. 29, illus.
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XXXIX. field; top left corner and full top edge re-
woven; bottom edge of outer minor border
Ettinghausen, et al. Prayer Rugs, no. XV, illus.
rewoven; woven top end first

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11 . Transylvanian Prayer Rug
Eighteenth century
166.5 x 120.5 cm. (65lh x 47 V2 in.)
Gift of Nellie Ballard White 305 : 1972

This red-ground prayer rug belongs to

the same group as the preceding one,
but seems later in date. The tracery in
the spandrels here is random and un-
clear, while the dark blue main border
features a repetition of squared-off
floral clusters reminiscent of other late
eighteenth or even nineteenth-centur)
borders.

The horseshoe arch is considerably

more rounded and exaggerated here
than in the preceding example. The
profile of the arch, with its notch at
the top, is very similar to the niches of
court-designed prayer rugs, particu-
larly to one in Berlin. The columns
retain their capitals, but other element
have undergone dramatic changes: thí
columns themselves now consist of
strings of diamonds instead of solid
pilings with internal diamond pattern-
ing, and the columns now rest upon
inverted blossoms instead of secure
bases.

This example and the preceding one

might be called Transylvanian Kulas in
the trade, suggesting that they were
woven in the western Anatolian town
of Kula for the Transylvanian market.
While this type may well originate in
western Anatolia, the relationship to
later rugs from Kula (see Nos. 16 and
17) does not seem certain enough to
justify such a precise attribution.

Provenance Technical Data

Nellie Ballard White, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, bottom end dyed yellow,
alternates moderately depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z light brown-yellow wool, red-orange at
1975 St. Joseph, Missouri. Albrecht Art
bottom end, x 2, lazy lines
Museum
Pile: slight Z wool, Turkish knot, 35 V. x 35 H.
= 1225 per sq. dm. (81 per sq. in.)
Sides: where original, 2 warp cords, inner cord
weft-wrapped, overcast with pale yellow
wool
Ends: not original
Colors (7): red, pale yellow, light brown, dark
brown, light blue, dark blue, ivory
Condition: top and bottom edges replaced;
patches in field; other small areas of repair;
woven top end first

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12 . Ghiordes Prayer Rug
Eighteenth century
168 x 123 cm. (66V4 x 48V2 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballarci 80: 1929

The influence of the Ottoman court

designs lived on through the eight-
eenth and nineteenth centuries in the
cottage weavings of Anatolian towns
and villages. The western Anatolian
town of Ghiordes produced large
quantities of rugs, mostly prayer rugs,
which demonstrate this heritage. The
earlier Ghiordes pieces, of which this
is one, make up a consistent group, but
they seem to have spawned a burgeon-
ing industry of imitations in the nine-
teenth and early twentieth centuries.
The name Ghiordes is thus invoked for
prayer rugs of similar design but
clearly woven in different places.

Several features of the prayer rugs

woven in the Ottoman court manufac-
tory are evident in this rug. The floral
device in the niche, although no
longer a mosque lamp, is still sus-
pended. The tracery of the spandrels
and the main border pattern of rosettes
alternating with palmettes bracketed
by curving leaves are continued in a
somewhat stiffened fashion. The pan-
els above and below the field contain
elongated hexagonal units filled with a
profusion of floral elements; similar
panels are found in earlier prayer rugs.

Court carpets were produced with

the aid of cartoons which enabled the
weavers to successfully turn corners in
the border designs. It is interesting to
note that the cottage weavers, who
worked without cartoons, were unable
to do this. Thus the side borders of
this rug meet the end borders not in a
smooth transition but with a complete
break in the design.

This brilliantly colored example from

the Ballard Collection does suffer from
Technical Data
extensive repair across the center of Provenance
James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, bottom end dyed yellow,
the field and from a good dose of
alternates slightly depressed
abrash (color change from differencesExhibitions Weft: Z wool, orange-red mixed with dark, x 2,
in the original dye lots) in the brown 1919
of Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum occasionally 3
1919 Cleveland. Cleveland Museum of Art
the border, a feature of other early Pile: Z wool, Turkish knot, 54.5 V. x 43 H. =
1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum 2343.5 per sq. dm. (154 per sq. in.)
examples. However, the striking con- of Art
Sides: not original
trast of the white tracery against dark1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute Ends: warp fringe
blue spandrels, adjacent to the stun- 1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Colors (14): dark red, orange red, pink, yellow,
ning orange-red field, more than 1950 Memphis. Brooks Memorial Gallery light yellow-brown, light brown, medium
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum brown, dark brown, medium blue-green,
compensates for this. 1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
light blue-green, dark blue, medium blue,
1975 St. Joseph, Missouri. Albrecht Art light blue, ivory
Museum
Condition: large rewoven or patched areas
Bibliography across center of field, top right spandrel into
GhtordesJFB, no. 21, lllus. border, and top of niche; other minor areas
Catalogue JFB, no. 27, illus. of repair; woven top end first
Dimand. Bailara Collection, pl. XXXV.

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13. Ghiordes Prayer Rug
Eighteenth century
184 x 138.5 cm. (72 V2 x 54V2 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballarci 79: 1929

A second fine, early Ghiordes prayer

rug is this example, probably contem-
porary with the preceding one. In
excellent condition, its very fine weave
has somewhat compressed a design
perfectly suited for a rug of slightly
lesser quality. The profusion of bor-
ders and the riot of fussy floral motifs
contrast sharply with the relative sim-
plicity of the niche itself.

This rug has a number of worthy fea-

tures. The elements in the field have
become pure ornament here and, to
the uninitiated, obscure the architec-
tural significance of the niche shape.
The columns float weightlessly with
blossoms at each end, and a double
floral spray hovers in the arch. White
cotton is used to highlight certain de-
sign elements; it has a brightness lack-
ing in ivory wool. Cotton was employed
in the sixteenth century rugs in the
same way, so this appears to be a hold-
over in technical tradition. White cot-
ton also is utilized for the wefts behind
the space occupied by the niche; the
red wefts used elsewhere in the rug
would have given the white pile of the
niche a pinkish cast. This feature is
found in other relatively early
Ghiordes rugs as well.

Provenance Technical Data

James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, ends dyed blue, alter-
nates moderately depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z red wool, Z2 white cotton behind
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute niche, x2, lazy lines
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Pile: Z wool, Z cotton, Turkish knot, 82 V. x
1950 Memphis. Brooks Memorial Gallery 43 H. = 3526 per sq. dm. (231 per sq. in.)
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum Sides: probably not original
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
Ends: top has plain weave band of red, then
1974 Washington, D.C. Textile Museum blue wefts, warp fringe; bottom has narrow
1975 St. Joseph, Missouri. Albrecht Art plain weave band of red wefts, warp fringe
Museum
Colors (15): dark red, red, pink, yellow, beige,
medium orange-brown, medium brown,
Bibliography
Ghiordes JFB, no. 2, illus. dark brown, light green, dark blue, medium
blue, medium green-blue, light blue, ivory,
Catalogue JFB, no. 24, illus.
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XXXVI.
white (cotton)
Condition: wear considerable but even, several
Ettinghausen, et al. Prayer Rugs, no. XIV, illus.
(color). small patches or rewoven areas; woven top
end first

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14 Kis-Ghiordes Rug
Nineteenth century
139 x 121 cm. (543/4 x 47V2 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 76: 1929

A particular type of rug attributed to

Ghiordes is the so-called Kis-Ghiordes.
Supposedly woven by young women
for their dowries (kis means "young
woman") these pieces have character-
istics which distinguish them from
other Ghiordes rugs. The design is a
double-ended one, with a small medal-
lion in the center and corner pieces
filled with jagged-edged leaves and
floral elements. Latchhooks, ewers,
and tiny flowers project into the field,
and floral clusters hang from each end.
At the ends of the field are panels of
squared floral clusters. The main bor-
der features reciprocal triangles sepa-
rated by a zigzag band. The edges of
this band have dozens of little hooks
and the band itself, like the field, is
littered with rows of small leaf shapes.
The main elements of design derive
from various types of much earlier
Ushakrugs.
The coloration is different from the
earlier Ghiordes rugs, perhaps because
these pieces were made only for local
consumption. Design details are in
reds, blues, and light yellow-green
against a white inner field; there are
no shades of brown at all except for
the dark brown of the outlines.

Provenance Technical Data

Beghian, Constantinople; James F. Ballard, Warp: Z2S ivory wool, ends dyed orange,
St. Louis alternates slightly to moderately depressed
Weft: Z2 beige wool x 2
Exhibitions
Pile: Z wool, Turkish knot, 58.5 V. x 39 H. =
1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum 2281 .5 per sq. dm. (150 per sq. in.)
1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum Sides: not original
of Art
Ends: top has plain weave band with red wool
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute wefts, warp fringe; bottom has warp fringe
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Colors (10): red, pink, orange, pale orange, pale
1950 Memphis. Brooks Memorial Gallery yellow, dark brown, light yellow-green, dark
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum blue, light blue, ivory
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
Condition: outer guard stripe missing bottom
end; small areas of repair
Bibliography
Catalogue J tu, no. 1/, uius.
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XXXVII.

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15. Rug with Caucasian Design
Early nineteenth century
155 x 142 cm. (61 V4x56in.)
Gift of James F. Ballare! 91 : 1929

The vast majority of extant eighteenth-

and nineteenth-century Turkish village
weavings demonstrate the filtering
down of designs prevalent in earlier
centuries in court and commercial
rugs. In a few instances, however, a
foreign model was imitated.

This unusual red-ground rug bears a

design found among Caucasian rugs
attributed to Kuba or Karabagh and
dating from the eighteenth century.
The principal design elements include
palmettes and large curving lancet
leaves arranged in pairs. This design,
and that of the famous ' 'Dragon car-
pets" from the same area, are thought
to derive from classical Persian rugs,
although specific precedents are not
known. Caucasian versions of this
design are usually large and repeat the
single unit of design seen in the smaller
Anatolian examples. Caucasian rugs
with this palmette and leaf design have
been found in mosques in Anatolia,
verifying the availability of the design
for imitation.

Many years ago this rug was described

as an antique Bergama with an "early
Archaic and Mongolian Design." The
source of the design has since been
clarified but the site where this piece
was manufactured remains uncertain.
A small number of Anatolian rugs in
this pattern are known. Various visual,
tactile, and technical differences indi-
cate that they were woven in several
areas in western Anatolia. Far more
variation exists in the main border
designs than in the field pattern.

Provenance Technical Data

James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, top end dyed red-
orange, alternates moderately depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z pink-red wool x 2, lazy lines
1916 Chicago. Marshall Field & Co. Pile: Z wool, Turkish knot, 51 V. x 35 H. = 1785
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute per sq. dm. (107 per sq. in.)
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Sides: not original
Bibliography Ends: not original
Rare Examples JtB, no. /, mus. Colors (10): red, pink, medium brown-yellow,
Catalogue JFB, no. 47, lllus. green-brown, purple-brown, blue-green,
Dimand. Bailara Collection, pl. XXXI. light blue, medium blue, dark blue, ivory
Condition: reknotted area in center of field,
patch in lower left corner

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lo. Kula Prayer Rug
Eighteenth century
180x123 cm. (71 x48V2in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 83: 1929

The prayer rugs of Kula, a town in

western Anatolia in the vicinity of
Ghiordes and Ushak, rival those of
Ghiordes in reputation and popularity
Made entirely of wool, Kula rugs
are not as finely woven as those of
Ghiordes. They are known particularl
for their multiple tiny borders, which
take the place of a main border, and fo
their mellow, subtle colors - ochres,
yellows, and beiges. These are feature:
of nineteenth-century Kula rugs,
whose coloration is in part due to the
impermanence of one or two dyes.
The St. Louis rug represents an earlier
phase of the Kula prayer rug, and the
coloration includes the strong red of
the field and several clear shades of
blue. The columns here retain their
architectural significance. The triple-
arched arrangement and the profile of
the column capitals have been seen
before in the Transylvanian rug of
undetermined origin (No. 9), but the
column bases here simply mirror the
capitals; they no longer possess the
faceting of the original design.

The main border design consists of a

repeated single square pattern which
varies only in its coloring. From a cen-
tral vase sprouts an arrangement of
tulips, carnations, and other flowers.
This unit of design appears upside
down throughout. When the rug was
still on the loom, however, it was right
side up; paradoxically, it was the cen-
tral niche and columns which were
then upside down.

Provenance Technical Data

Said to have come from a collection in Haarlem,
Warp: Z2S ivory wool, ends dyed yellow, alter-
The Netherlands; James F. Ballard, St. Louis
nates moderately depressed
Weft: Z wool, ivory in bottom half and top end,
Exhibitions
rest is pale orange, x 2, lazy lines
1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum Pile: slight Z wool, Turkish knot, 43 V. x 35 H.
1919 Cleveland. Cleveland Museum of Art
= 1505 per sq. dm. (99 per sq. in.)
1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum Sides: not original
of Art
Ends: warp fringe
1922 Minneapolis. Minneapolis Institute of ArtsColors (11): red, pale ochre, ecru, medium gray-
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute brown, medium brown, dark brown, dark
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute blue-green, medium blue-green, dark blue,
1950 Memphis. Brooks Memorial Gallery light blue, ivory
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum Condition: miscellaneous minor repairs mainly
Bibliography to edges; woven top end first
Exhibition JFB, no. 17, illus.
Catalogue JFB, no. 31, illus.
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XLII.
Benson. "Transcendent Appeal," p. 65, illus.

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17. Kula Prayer Rug
Late eighteenth or early
nineteenth century
162.5 x 113 cm. (64 x 44l/z in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 186: 1929

The second Kula prayer rug is very

similar to the first, but it may be of
slightly more recent manufacture. The
columns barely resemble columns
anymore; they are not only festooned
with interior blossoms, but also are
edged with tiny bud-like projections.
Lacking the support of proper bases,
they rest instead upon two of the five
blossoms arranged in series along the
lower edge of the field. A complex and
ornate floral bouquet hangs from the
prominent central arch. The spandrel
area is broken up into a pattern of vase-
shaped units containing floral motifs.
There is hardly a straight line that has
not been embellished or broken up in
some way, a development in taste only
partially realized in the preceding
example.
The colors are particularly pleasing,
several blues and blue-greens setting
off the strong brick red of the field.
The blossoms of the border sprout
from a single continuous vine; in many
Kulas, including the preceding one,
the border consists of a series of dis-
tinct square units of floral motifs.

Provenance Technical Data

James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, ends dyed yellow, alter-
nates slightly to moderately depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z wool, mostly light yellow-brown but
1950 Memphis. Brooks Memorial Gallery some orange-red, x 2, sometimes 3, lazy lines
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
Pile: light Z wool, Turkish knot, 43 V. x 29 H. =
Bibliography
1247 per sq. dm. (82 xli per sq. in.)
Uimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XL.
Sides: 2 warp cords, inner cord weft-wrapped,
overcast in blue-green or light yellow-brown
wool

Ends: warp fringe

Colors (12): red, ecru, pale brown-yellow, light
brown, medium brown, medium blue-green,
light blue-green, dark blue, medium blue,
light blue, ivory, black
Condition: miscellaneous minor repairs and
patches; black corroded; woven top end first

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18. Ladik Prayer Rug
Late eighteenth or early
nineteenth century
194 x 120.5 cm. (76 »A x 47 V2 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 94:1929

The weaving of prayer rugs in Anatolia

in the eighteenth and nineteenth cen-
turies was not confined to the western
part ofthat region. The village of La-
dik, near Konya in central Anatolia,
produced rugs with certain recogniz-
able characteristics. Traditional Ladik
patterns were remembered and used
by weavers well into the present cen-
tury. A number of rugs bear inscrip-
tions giving dates in the late eighteenth
or early nineteenth century, a dating
consistent with the style of the rugs.
The dispersal of Ladik rugs to mosques
throughout Turkey suggests that they
were manufactured specifically for
pious donation; the inscribed date
would have recorded the year of
donation.

Although its coloring and condition

are exceptional, this Ballard rug is still
typical of the type and seems contem-
porary with the dated examples. The
niche of the field is capped by three
pointed arches. Although columns are
lacking, this harks back to the triple-
arched type. The undecorated field is a
rich red; blue, ivory, or green is used
as the field color in other pieces. The
spandrel above the niche contains
serrated leaves, rosettes, and blossoms.
The crenellated panel at the top of the
field holds a row of stylized tulips, a
feature which recalls similar panels in
Mamluk rugs from Egypt and in Otto-
man court rugs. This panel is some-
times located below the niche, thus
centering the niche within the bor-
ders. The border design is the one
most commonly used in Ladik rugs:
rosettes alternate with tulips angled
between two hooked leaves.

Provenance Technical Data

James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, alternates moderately
depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z wool, undyed mixed brown (but pale
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute orange at top), x 2
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Pile: Z2, some Z wool, Turkish knot, 49 V. x
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum 31 H. = 1519 per sq. dm. (100 per sq. in.)
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
Sides: 2 cords of 2 warps, inner cord weft-
1974 Washington, D.C. Textile Museum wrapped, overcast with wool, mostly pale
1975 St. Joseph, Missouri. Albrecht Art brown-orange, red at bottom end
Museum
Ends: warp fringe
Bibliography Colors (11): red, red-orange, pale brown-yellow,
Catalogue JFB, no. 54, lllus. pale purple-brown, dark purple-brown, dark
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XVI. brown, medium blue-green, light yellow-
Ettinghausen, et al. Prayer Rugs, p. 62, green, dark blue, medium blue, ivory
no. XVI (color). Condition: minor repairs along bottom edge;
dark brown corroded; woven top end first
Walter Denny. Oriental Rugs. New York:
Cooper Hewitt Museum, 1979, p. 48, fig. 28.

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19 Ladik Prayer Rug
Late eighteenth or early
nineteenth century
200.5 x 115.5 cm. (79 x 45 V2 in.)
Gift of Nellie Ballard White 311 : 1972

The second rug attributed to Ladik

has a tall, narrow niche with a stepped
arch and a horned projection at the
top. Hooks project from the arch out-
line into the spandrel, which is packed
with little octagons containing stars.
In the main border geometricized
rosettes and other devices alternate,
with a reciprocal scroll winding in and
out. The border is a simplified and
geometricized version of a design
employed in earlier Ushak carpets.
This rug has the same rich reds and
blues as the preceding example, but
its lighter border produces a different
effect.

Rugs with this distinctive border are

said to have been woven in the little
village of Innice, near Ladik. None of
the rugs with this border has an in-
scribed date, but the niche shape,
striped outlining, and the star-filled
octagons of the spandrels link this rug
to others bearing late eighteenth or
early nineteenth century dates.

Provenance Technical Data

James F. Ballard, St. Louis; Nellie BallardWarp: Z2S ivory (to silver) wool, alternates
White,
St. Louis moderately depressed
Weft: Z, occasionally Z2, Z3 wool, light brown
Exhibitions
(also single red, single blue), x 2
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute Pile: Z2, also Z wool, Turkish knot, 43 V. x 31 H.
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute = 1333 per sq. dm. (88 per sq. in.)
1933 Chicago. The Art Institute of Chicago Sides: 4 cords of 2 warps; weft- wrapping over
1 , 2 or 3; overcast in orange or purple wool
Bibliography
Catalogue JbB, no. 56, Ulus.
Ends: bottom has plain weave band, orange
NBW Collection, no. 25. wool wefts, warp fringe; top not original
Benson. Iranscendent Appeal, p- Go, mus.
Colors (10): red, light purple, purple, pale
brown-yellow, light brown, medium brown,
light green, light blue, medium blue, ivory
Condition: top end minor border replaced;
center bottom end rewoven; miscellaneous
holes and patches center of left border;
woven top end first

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20. Konya Prayer Rug
Eighteenth or early
nineteenth century
141 .5 x 95.5 cm. (553A x 37V2 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballarci 109:1930

In spite of its worn and heavily re-

stored condition, the brilliant coloring
and bold designs found in this unusual
prayer rug warrant careful scrutiny.
The deep brick red ground of the
niche is unadorned except for a con-
tinuous row of tiny geometricized
blossoms, possibly tulips, projecting
inward from the outline. The shape of
the niche, with its double triangular
indentations, is unusual. The top sides
of the niche swell slightly and meet at
the horned projection in an apex that
corresponds perhaps to a notch in
earlier prayer rugs (see No. 11). Hover-
ing in the spandrels is an armada of
geometricized boat or insect-like de-
vices with projecting feelers, deriving
in a most fantastic way from the ser-
rated curved leaves found in the span-
drels of some Transylvanian rugs (see
No. 8) as well as in some Ladik pieces
(No. 18).
A prayer rug formerly in the McMullan
Collection bears on this interpretation.
Related to the Ballard rug in its deep
triangular niche indentations and in its
multiple-stripe niche outline, this rug's
stiff, angular serrated leaves with T-
shaped projections may be simply a
step or two closer to the prototype
than the Ballard rug.

The colorful striping of these mysteri-

ous devices, of the outlines of the
upper part of the niche, and of the
triangular indentations provide a
bright, festive tone. The border pattern
of lobed medallions harks back to a
popular border design found in Tran-
sylvanian pieces (see No. 9). On the
basis of its coloring, technical charac-
teristics, and border design, this rug
can be attributed to the Konya district
in south-central Anatolia. Only one Provenance Technical Data
other known piece, a prayer rug re- James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S wool, ivory (with some dark hairs)
cently seen in the trade, relates or light brown, alternates slightly depressed
Exhibitions
closely to this rug. Weft: Z, very occasionally Z2, ivory-natural
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum light brown wool x 2
1974 Washington, D.C. Textile Museum Pile: Z, Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 47 V. x 39 H. =
1975 St. Joseph, Missouri. Albrecht Art 1833 per sq. dm. (120 per sq. in.)
Museum
Sides: not original
Ends: not original
Colors (10); red, orange-red, pink, purple, pale
purple, pale brown-yellow, medium brown,
medium green-blue, dark blue, ivory
Condition: outer guard band missing on all
sides; numerous large reknotted areas, espe-
cially across top of niche and across lower
field; woven bottom end first

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21 . Konya Medallion Rug
Nineteenth century
219.5 x 163.5 cm. (86V2 x 64 V2 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballarci 88: 1929

The city of Konya serves as a regional

commercial center, and many types
of rugs thought to have been woven in
the region have thus been lumped
together under its name. A similar
commercial function was served by
the cities of Hamadan in Iran and
Bukhara in Soviet Turkestan. Carpets
from the Konya region have been
famous since the thirteenth century,
when Marco Polo commented on their
beauty. Some Konya rugs are nomadic
products which show little if any influ-
ence from the court or the world of
commerce; the designs reflect the
traditions of a particular ethnic or
tribal group. Other Konya rugs, village
and nomadic, do demonstrate various
influences from outside sources.

Based upon their bright coloring,

lustrous wool, and certain design
elements, this rug and the few others
with similar field designs can be attrib-
uted to the Konya region. The St. Louis
rug is the smallest of the group; the
largest is 355 centimeters long. Design
features of the double-niche Transylva-
nian rugs appear here - the cartouche
border and the spandrel decoration of
rosettes and leaves (see No. 8). But the
field design is so unusual that it defies
close comparison to any known model
or parallel.

A quatrefoil medallion is centered

in the field. From it, toward both ends
of the rug, hang multiple connected
jewelled triangles from which are sus-
pended still smaller jewelled orna-
ments. The ornamented triangular
devices are magic symbols intended to
ward off the evil eye; similar devices
are found in nomad jewelry, worn as
protective amulets. The popularity of
such devices in prayer rugs of rustic Provenance Bibliography
manufacture indicates that symmetry Rare Examples JFB, no. 9, illus.
Holstein, Berlin; James F. Ballard, St. Louis
Catalogue JFB, no. 44, illus.
has been created here by a simple dou- Exhibitions
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XXX, (color).
bling or flopping of the niche design, 1916 Chicago. Marshall Field & Co. Ends: bottom has narrow band of plain weave
as can be seen in Transylvanian rugs. 1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum Colors (8): orange-red, purple, pale yellow, dark
1919 Cleveland. Cleveland Museum of Art
brown, medium green, light blue-green,
1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum medium blue, ivory
of Art
Condition: a rew small rewoven areas; early
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute photo shows wide striped plain weave bands
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute at ends

Technical Data
Warp: Z2S ivory wool, alternates level
Weft: Z, occasional Z2 orange-red wool x 2
Pile: Z2, some Z wool, Turkish knot, 41 V. x 31
H. = 1271 per sq. dm. (84 per sq. in.)
Sides: 3 cords of 2 warps, inner cord weft-
wrapped, overcast with orange-red wool

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22 . Konya Medallion Rug
Nineteenth century
170xll3cm.(67x44V2in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 129:1929

This charming medallion rug from the

Ballard Collection can be assigned to
the Konya district of central Anatolia,
where the medallion and corner de-
sign was popular. Specific notable
details include the relatively sparse
embellishment of the red field com-
pared to Ushak pieces, whose profuse
floral tracery tends to fill the voids
between medallions. The Ballard rug
has floral field motifs oriented on the
diagonal, a feature seen in several
pieces found in mosques in the Konya
area. There are earlier Konya rugs ex-
tant with stems which undulate diago-
nally between staggered medallions.
From these stems sprout Ottoman
flowers - tulips, carnations, and
hyacinths - the possible precursors
of the Ballard rug's isolated, canted
floral sprays.

Lappet bands are found in many Konya

area rugs, as is the natural mixture of
ivory and brown wool used in the
warps. The prominent outlining in the
sharp white is also consistent with this
group.

Provenance Technical Data

James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S wool, ivory with a little brown
mixed, alternates moderately depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: Z wool, red or pink, x 2
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum Pile: Z2, occasionally Z3 wool, Turkish knot,
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
43 V. x 37 H. = 1591 per sq. dm. (104V2 per
Bibliography sq. in.)
Dimana. Bailara collection, pl. xxvn.
Sides: not original
Ends: top has narrow plain weave band, red
wefts, warp fringe; bottom has warp fringe
Colors (12): red, orange-red, purple, pink,
orange, yellow, dark brown, light green, light
green-blue, medium green-blue, dark blue,
ivory
Condition: lacking outer border on sides;
bottom end worn into pile; several areas
of repair

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23. Konya Medallion Rug
Nineteenth century
233x165 cm. (913A x65 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 116:1929

The silhouetting of motifs in sharply

contrasting colors, a contrast empha-
sized by the absence of outlines to
separate these colors, is a key feature
of this strikingly beautiful rug. The
brilliant red tracery shimmers against
the highly variable blue field, and the
scrolling vines and cartouches of the
border stand out sharply against the
white ground. There is very little de-
tailing of the interior elements of the
design, characteristic of a small group
of carpets whose design and style
seem closely related to tapestry- woven
rugs known as kilims.

This rug seems closely related, particu-

larly in its border design, to a kilim-
style carpet in the Vakiflar Museum,
Istanbul. That piece, in turn, can be
linked to a group of rugs from Kara-
pinar, near Konya. In all of these exam-
ples, the silhouettes of blossoms at-
tached to the vines in the field recall
the Ottoman floral style, which had
such a strong influence in the Konya
area. This region in general seems to
be a source for pile carpets woven in
the kilim style.

Provenance Technical Data

Warp: Z2S ivory wool
Herren Weise and Matthieu; Jacoby, Berlin;
B. Altman & Co., New York; James F. Ballarci,
Weft: Z, occasionally Z2, Z3 red wool x 2 or
St. Louis occasionally 3, 4, 5
Pile: Z2, occasionally Z, Z3 wool, Turkish knot,
Exhibitions
offset at diagonals, 39 V. x 25 H. = 975 per
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute sq. dm. (65 per sq. in.)
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute Sides: not original
1950 Memphis. Brooks Memorial Gallery Ends: not original
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum Colors (7): red, medium dull purple, pale
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
orange, light pink-brown, medium blue,
Bibliography medium green-blue, ivory (complicated
jacouy. ¿ammiung, pl. ll ^coior ucian;.
by abrash)
A collection of Antique Carpets. New York: Condition: main border, lower half of each side,
B. Altman & Co., 1923, pl. XXII, pp. replaced;
34-35.numerous repairs
Catalogue JFB, no. 89, illus.
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. XVI (color)

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24. Mudjur Prayer Rug
Circa 1800
186x132 cm. (73 lU x 52 in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 108: 1929

To the area around Mudjur in central

Anatolia is attributed a group of prayer
rugs with strong, earthy colors and a
red-ground niche with a stepped top
culminating in an arrowhead-shaped
apex. The spandrels above the niche
contain either stylized leaves and ro-
settes or rosettes and ewers, emblem-
atic of the ritual ablution required of
the devout Muslim before prayer. A
panel containing a series of reciprocal
trefoils routinely stands above the
field. The border design consistently
incorporates a series of squares whose
corner triangles define interior dia-
monds containing star-like rosettes.
The random use of color in the bor-
der provides interest to an otherwise
repetitive design.

The tall proportions and stepped

outline of the arch of the niche recall
some of the contemporary production
of the Ladik area (see No. 19), also in
central Anatolia. Certain design ele-
ments illustrate the debt to sixteenth
and seventeenth-century weaving. The
crenellated panel above the field ap-
pears in late sixteenth-century prayer
rugs of the highest quality (see Figure
3). The shape of the niche apex recalls
the "head-and-shoulders" profile of
the niches found in these same late
sixteenth-century court products.
Both features can also be found in the
seventeenth and eighteenth-century
Transylvanian rugs which also drew
from the repertoire of earlier court
manufactures.

The border design harks back to ear-

lier Anatolian rugs like the large-
pattern Holbeins and compartment
rugs (see No. 4), in which star-shaped
rosettes within octagons within
squares were the principal elements Provenance Technical Data
of design. James F. Ballard, St. Louis Warp: Z2S ivory wool, alternates very slightly
depressed
Exhibitions
Weft: orange-red Z wool x 2
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute Pile: Z2 wool, Turkish knot, 35 V. x 13 H. =
1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute 1085 per sq. dm. (72 per sq. in.)
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum Sides: 2 pairs of wraps, inner pair held by weft-
1972 St. Louis. The Saint Louis Art Museum
wrapping, all overcast with yellow-green
1974 Washington, D.C. Textile Museum wool
1975 St. Joseph, Missouri. Albrecht Art Ends: warp fringe
Museum
Colors (12): red, orange-red, light purple,
brown-orange, pale brown-yellow, medium
Bibliography
brown-yellow, dark brown, light yellow-
Exhibition JFB, no. 52, p. 7, lllus.
green, medium blue-green, light blue,
Catalogue JFB, no. 80, illus.
medium blue, ivory
Dimana. Bailara collection, pl. LVii.
Condition: woven top end first; worn to foun-
Ettinghausen, et al. Prayer Rugs, p. 66,
dation in several spots, otherwise good pile;
no. XVIII, illus. (color).
few small repairs

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2 5 . Eastern Anatolian Rug with
a Compartment Design
Nineteenth century
181 x 126.5 cm. (71 xh x 493A in.)
Gift of James F. Ballard 89: 1929

Provenance Technical Data

In Turkey there are great numbers
James F. Ballarci, St. Louis Warp: Z2S wool, ivory with occasional dark
of nomads, some still wandering but
gray admixture, alternates level
many now settled. Unlike Iran, where Exhibitions
Weft: Z red wool x 2; some packing wefts
tribal distinctions and identities have 1916 Chicago. Marshall Field & Co. Pile: Z2, some Z3 wool, Turkish knot, offset
1919 Philadelphia. Pennsylvania Museum along diagonals, 35 V. x 25 H. = 875 per sq.
remained strong, in Turkey the no- 1919 Cleveland. Cleveland Museum of Art
mads are more homogeneous and are1921 New York. The Metropolitan Museum dm. (581/2persq. in.)
Sides: 2 cords of 2 warps overcast in blue,
thus more difficult to categorize. As a of Art green-blue, and light yellow-brown wool;
result, all of these tribes, many of them
1923 Pittsburgh. Carnegie Institute overcasting wraps around both cords, comes
Kurdish, have been lumped together1924 Indianapolis. Herron Art Institute up between them and crosses over
1967 St. Louis. City Art Museum
under the convenient rubric Yürük, Ends: top has plain weave band, warp fringe;
bottom has warp fringe only
meaning " wanderers" in Turkish. The Bibliographv
Colors (12): medium blue-red, medium orange-
rugs produced by these tribespeople Rare Examples JFB, no. 6, illus. red, purple, orange, light red-orange, light
are therefore called Yürük also. The Catalogue JFB, No. 45, illus.
Dimand. Ballard Collection, pl. LXII. yellow-brown, dark brown, medium blue-
name suggests a societal rather than a green, light blue-green, medium blue, dark
geographical location. Yürük rugs blue, ivory
Condition: few areas worn to foundation; few
typically have a very thick pile of reknotted areas; dark brown corroded
lustrous homegrown wool.
A fine example of Yürük weaving
from eastern Anatolia is this rug with
its pattern of octagonal lozenges orga-
nized in the manner of tiles. Inside
each lozenge is a geometricized design
resembling an insect, a device which
originated as a floral motif with pro-
jecting leaves. One other carpet with
the same design and coloration is
known; it has the same border design
as the Ballard rug, but an additional
border of amulet symbols around it.
Another rug, similar to both of these
pieces, was found in eastern Anatolia
at Sarkisla, where it may have been
woven.

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 33

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Bibliography

Short titles have been used for frequently cited Ettinghausen, et. al. Prayer Rugs Loan ExhibitionfFB
works and have been identified by the follow- Richard Ettinghausen, et. al. Prayer Rugs.Loan Exhibition of Oriental Rugs from the
ing abbreviations: Washington, D.C.: Textile Museum, 1974. Collection of fames F. Ballard of St. Louis,
Missouri. New York: The Metropolitan
Antique Oriental Rugs ExhibitionfFB Museum of Art, 1921.
An Exhibition of Antique Oriental Rugs. An Exhibition of Oriental Rugs Lent by fames
Chicago: Art Institute, 1947. Franklin Ballard. Pittsburgh: Carnegie Insti- NBW Collection
tute, Department of Fine Arts, 1923-24. Nellie Ballard White Collection of Oriental
Benson. "Transcendent Appeal" Rugs. Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago,
Hank Benson. "The Transcendent Appeal GhiordesfFB 1933.
of the Prayer Rug." Antiques World, 4, No. 1 Illustrated Catalogue and Descriptions of
(November, 1981), 64-69. Ghiordes Rugs of the Seventeenth and Eigh- Rare Examples fFB
teenth Centuries from the Collection of fames Rare Examples in Antique Oriental Weavings
CatalogueJFB E Ballard. [spine title: Thirty-Six Antique from Persia, the Caucasus, and the Levant
Catalogue of Oriental Rugs in the Collection Ghiordes Rugs]. St. Louis: The Oriental Selected from the Collection of fames E
of fames F. Ballard, [cover title: Ballard Collec- Publishing Co., 1916. Ballard. Chicago: Marshall Field and Company,
tion of Oriental Rugs]. Indianapolis: The John 1916 [Home Furnishing Exhibit].
Herron Art Institute, 1924. InauguralfFB
inaugural Exhibition oj a Collection oj Orien- Twenty NBW
Dimand. Ballard Collection
tal Rugs Presented to the Museum by fames E Twenty Oriental Rugs in the Collection of Nellie
Maurice S. Dimand. The Ballard Collection
Ballard. St. Louis: City Art Museum, 1929. Ballard White, [cover title: Twenty Oriental
of Oriental Rugs in the City Art Museum of Rugs from the Collection of Nellie Ballard
St. Louis. St. Louis, 1935. [published privately] Jacoby.
. Sammlung White]. St. Louis, 1932.
Heinrich Jacoby. Eine Sammlung orientalische
Eastern Carpet in the Western World Teppiche. Berlin: Scarabaeus, 1923.
The Eastern Carpet in the Western World from
the 15th to the 17th Century. London: Arts "JFB Collection"
Council of Great Britain, 1983. C. P. D. "The James F. Ballard Collection of
Oriental Rugs." Bulletin of the City Art Museum
of St. Louis, December, 1929.

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Glossary

Abrash Knot Spin or Twist (S, Z)

Uneven color changes in the pile resulting The basic structural unit of the pile rug. Knots When viewed in a vertical position, the direc-
from different dye lots or uneven dyeing vary according to local and tribal weaving tion of the spin or twist of a yarn conforms to
which, with time, react differently to light; traditions, with the main types being the sym-the diagonal of the letter S or the letter Z.
generally appears as horizontal stripes. metrical (Turkish, Ghiordes) and asymmetrical
Warp
(Persian, Sehna) varieties.
Border Yarns that run lengthwise in a fabric from one
A design around the edge of a rug enclosing LazytheLines end to another, interlaced at right angles by the
field. The border usually includes a wide bandDiagonal lines visible from the back of the rug
wefts, and around which the pile rug knots are
of repeating design called the main border.caused by successive rows of turnaround of wrapped. The warps in rugs are usually tightly
discontinuous wefts. This occurs when only spun and plied for strength.
Ends
a section of a rug is woven at one time.
The top and bottom borders which finish Warp Levels (offset)
the rug and prevent unraveling. The simplest Pile The warps are all on one level in some rugs.
method is to weave wefts through the warps Yarns that project from the plane of a fabric to
Others have alternate warps at different levels,
to form a woven fabric at each end. Another form a raised surface. The pile in rugs is com-described as slightly, moderately, or deeply
method is to weave several rows of weft posed of the cut ends of the yarns that form depressed warps. This is caused by the weft
yarns and then knot the warps together the rug knots. tension. Asymmetrical knots are more likely
to produce tassels. to have alternate warps deeply depressed than
Ply
symmetrical knots, whereas both symmetrical
Field The twisting together of two or more single
and asymmetrical knots can have warps on
The portion of a rug design enclosed by bor-
yarns. The direction of plying is usually opposite the same level.
ders. The field may be unoccupied or contain
to the direction of the spin of the single yarn.
medallions or an overall pattern. Weft
Shoot
Yarns that run crosswise in a fabric from
Flat Weave A single weft woven through warps. The color
selvedge to selvedge, interlacing the warp, at
Term describing rugs woven without knotted and number of shoots between each row of
right angles. Unlike rug warps, rug wefts are
pile. knots can be characteristic of certain types
often somewhat loosely spun and frequently
of rugs.
Kilim not plied or very loosely plied. This allows the
A weft-faced tapestry-woven rug. Kilims are Sides (Edges, Selvedges) wefts to be firmly compacted and holds the rug
The finished edge of the long side of a rug. Two
called flat-woven rugs to distinguish them from knots securely in place.
pile rugs. Kilim is often used to describe the or more warps are wrapped in various combi-
non-pile area at the beginning (heading) or nations together for strength to form a warp
end of a rug. cord. Can be characteristic of particular rug-
producing regions. Technical construction may
vary widely from area to area and from period
to period, forming an important identifying
characteristic of a rug. Because sides are the
first areas to wear, they are likely to have
been repaired.

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