Carpet

Unknown

probably late 18th–early 19th century · Wool (warp, weft, and pile); symmetrically knotted pile · Islamic Art

The design of this carpet is dominated by a pair of large octagons inscribed by star motifs radiating from smaller central octogons. This type of composition, which has been favored by Turkish carpet weavers since the fifteenth century, derives from the layout of "Holbein" carpets, named after a depiction of a similar work in a famous portrait by the sixteenth-century German painter Hans Holbein the Younger. The powerful geometric forms impart an unusually strong artistic impact on this work of such modest size.

Artist

Unknown

Date

probably late 18th–early 19th century

Medium

Wool (warp, weft, and pile); symmetrically knotted pile

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Reginald P. Rose, 1959