Sunday 26 October 2014

Ottoman period Syrian woman’s silk shawl with silver thread

An Ottoman period woman’s silk shawl with silver thread and large silk tassels bound with metal thread.


The shawl is in very good overall condition with no holes or tears, just some pale rust coloured stains to areas of the silver bands, mainly in the lower left (see last photo in link below). There is one silver saf-like motif in the centre and another to one side which forms the logo of the master weaver (see back when worn and the last photos). Made to be worn over an abba street dress with the substantial weighted tassels functioning as very good anchors for the shawl. From about 1915-1930, size 145cm (including tassels) x 136cm

For more photos see: www.kilim.ie









Wednesday 22 October 2014

Something different - a pair of antique camel neck decorations

A pair of different but related antique tribal camel neck bands


The bands incorporate a variety of materials and construction techniques. They are made using cowrie shells, hand made glass beads with intense colour, hand spun and dyed wool using natural dyes, goat hair bindings on the loops, felted wool fabric and plaited wool pom pom fasteners.

The backs are lined with old but not original fabric. There is evident wear from tribal use to the wool bindings on the lower, convex edges at the centre of the bands where they would have rubbed against the camels' necks.
The blank, plain wool fabric centres are currently a mystery, and show signs of an additional decoration having been attached, perhaps for displaying a type of beaded rosette as seen way down in this write up of Saul Barodofsky's Textile Museum talk.

I originally thought these might be Central Asian Nazarlik camel neck decorations from Uzbekistan or Afghanistan but others now believe they are more likely north African tribal pieces, perhaps Moroccan Berber, Tunisian or from Mali. But please feel free to enlighten me if you have some experience of this type of tribal camel or horse decoration and you know for sure. Size 90cm x 8cm each band.

For more photos see www.kilim.ie

















Saturday 18 October 2014

Old kilims and fragment auctions on eBay

Auction of kilims and antique fragments on eBay



I am auctioning various kilims and fragments on eBay over the next few weeks starting at $1, some with no reserve - the first ending next Sunday 26th October: http://stores.ebay.com/tribalrugsandkilims


Here are photos of five of the first pieces already listed or starting later this evening.


For more kilims and fragments and details of the pieces being auctioned see www.kilim.ie









Tuesday 14 October 2014

19th century imperial purple silk saf panel from Aleppo, Syria

An antique finely woven silk panel with saf design from Aleppo


Related to my last post, this is an older hand-loomed silk panel from Aleppo, Syria with a saf design from the late 19th or early 20th century. The deep purple and silver silk is particularly fine and soft and in very good condition for its age with just a small fault in the upper left saf at the front and some marks to the back centre. Possibly made as a wrap for use after a hamam Turkish bath. The ends of the long rectangular panel 172cm x 95cm are stitched together at the back. For more photos see: www.tribal-art.org or www.kilim.ie





Sunday 12 October 2014

Antique Ottoman Aleppo saf design silk dress

Antique Ottoman Aleppo silk skirt and shawl or hamam dress


Kathi modelling an Ottoman combined silk skirt and shawl (or hamam Turkish bath dress) found during our September trip to Anatolia. Made from two large strong silk panels woven in Aleppo, Syria, each with saf designs, one around the head end of the shawl and the other at the lower edge of the skirt, which has a purple and white cotton rope drawstring. In exceptional condition as can be seen in the photos. See more photos on www.kilim.ie or www.tribal-art.org and contact me HERE for further information







Sunday 5 October 2014

New finds from Anatolia, October 2014

Kilims and rugs found on a three week trip to Anatolia and Cappadocia


We are just home from a three week trip to Turkey, starting in Antalya and working our way up to Cappadocia via Konya and Aksaray. This time we also managed to have some time off looking for interesting kilims and did some sightseeing, visiting Mevlana mosque, home of Rumi, and the carpet museum with its ancient rug fragments. In Cappadocia we enjoyed cooler but mostly fine weather and explored some of the ancient valleys flanked by fairy chimneys, rock cut homes and churches with pigeon houses cut high up into the cliffs.

Here is a selection of the one hundred or so kilims and rugs we found. Antique textiles, including some beautiful Syrian and Cappadocian silk weavings from Urgup, I will post later. If you would like to see more of the finds from this trip, please visit www.kilim.ie

Antique yoruk nomad small rug from the village of Yavuz Eli between Gaziantep and Adiyaman in south east Anatolia.

A large antique Taspinar yoruk nomad kilim with stunning colours and design.

A 1900s long Sivas 9 saf prayer kilim with a design going back to the 18th century.
A very finely woven 19th c. Anatolian kilim with Adana like centre and Aksaray border; stunning colours and drawing!


Large east Anatolian Kurdish rug

A fine 19th century Malatya Sinan village kilim

An antique Aydin Cine kilim from west Anatolia

A beautiful antique kilim from Adana with great colours

A mid 20th century saf kilim from Sivas

A rare small antique kilim from Alibey Huyugu near Cumra close to the ancient site of Catal Hüyuk in the Konya region associated with the Anatolian mother goddess.

A very well woven 20th century prayer kilim from Erzurum

A fine antique Malatya prayer kilim from Porga Village, Yeşilyurt including metal thread

An early 20th century Sarkoy kilim in excellent condition

Antique Uzbek kilim from Ghudjeri, Akingilem, excellent natural dyes with small nomadic repairs with pieces of tent bands

A very rare antique prayer rug from the Kurdish district of Konya. There is one example in the Mevlana Museum, Konya.

A very large old Konya Hotamis kilim in excellent condition (photo taken under artificial light).

An old Karapinar saf kilim

An antique Manastir yastik kilim from the Mihaliccik area of west Turkey

A rare and beautiful yoruk nomad woman's prayer rug woven on goat hair from the Gaziantep region.

A large antique prayer kilim from Yahyali

An excellent example of a small Konya village kilim from Akviran

A rare old kilim horse cover with piled rug decorations from Nidge in Cappadocia