Bedding Bag

Unknown

ca. 1825–75 · Wool (warp, ground weft, and sumak weft), cotton (white sumak weft), and goat(?) hair (loops); sumak extra-weft wrapping (sides); weft-faced plain weave (bottom and sides) · Islamic Art

Shahsevan bedding bags, previously misidentified as children’s cradles, represent the durable, lightweight nomadic equivalent of a steamer trunk, intended for blankets, quilts, and other bedding. These boxlike bags are composed of four decorated panels, usually with sumak extra-weft wrapping and a weft-faced plain-weave bottom. The field design seen here features a central band of connected white hexagons alternating with blue half hexagons. The red cruciform motif on the white cotton ground in the hexagons contributes to the bag’s striking appearance. Yellow guard stripes with stylized tendrils separate the main band from the upper and lower secondary bands of stylized clouds in the form of an octagonal cross.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1825–75

Medium

Wool (warp, ground weft, and sumak weft), cotton (white sumak weft), and goat(?) hair (loops); sumak extra-weft wrapping (sides); weft-faced plain weave (bottom and sides)

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Gift of Inger G. and William B. Ginsberg, 2015