A Salé silk embroidered sampler (chelliga), North Morocco,

silk embroidery on linen

A related chelliga can be found in The Eliza M.and Sarah L. Niblack Collection, Indianapolis Museum of Art, see: Paydar, Niloo Imani and Ivo Grammet, The Fabric of Moroccan Life, Indianapolis, 2002, 33.249, p.79; the present lot is however of exceptional quality and fineness. The various clasped leaf and urn or flower spray running borders are closely related to the designs found in Azemmour valances, themselves derived from early Andalusian embroideries and the carpets of Alcaraz and Cuenca, see Sotheby's London, Gordon Watson, The End of a Chapter, 3 May, 2006, Lot 258.