A Tetouan silk embroidered Aajara (bedcover), Morocco,

the embroidery worked in dark white, ivory, lemon yellow, crimson, aubergine, teal blue, indigo, forest green, and walnut silk

The embroideries of Tetouan reveal the mixed artistic heritage of the city; originally founded by the Marinids in the early 14th century, as a military base, it was destroyed by Henri II of Castille in 1399 and then re-established by refugee Spanish Jews and Muslims, after the fall of Granada in 1492. The city prospered under the rule of Moulay Ismail (1672-1727) and became the diplomatic capital  of Morocco.  Families from Algiers also settled in the city, bringing their Turkish inspired embroidery styles with them; Algeria was annexed to the Ottoman empire in 1535.  The present lot clearly shows  the influence of Ottoman  embroideries, and indeed the lower register of flower sprays is almost purely Ottoman in style, becoming more typically Tetouan in the upper rows, whilst the format is traditionally Moroccan.