A MUGHAL SILK FLORAL LATTICE CARPET FRAGMENT, DECCAN, PROBABLY HYDERABAD |

size adjusted

Overall measurements, the mount: 144cm across the top, 144cm across the bottom, 163cm the left hand side, 163cm the right hand side. This fragment is pieced and joined in the top upper third, across the width, as visible in the photograph. Side borders are integral. End borders are pieced in, and made up of several sections. Pile varies from approximately 1mm to areas of knot bars. We are not entirely sure whether some of the dark browns/black have been tinted with pigment at some stage, or whether the dye was loose, but it does look as is the brown/black has run. We can say that the pile all appears to be original in these areas. It might be possible to improve this, with careful professional localised cleaning, but a textile conservator would need to advise on what would be possible. Silk is very nice quality and the red is a good pinkish/strawberry red colour and there are also details in darker crimson, pale yellow, pale blue, ivory, brownish aubergine, pale lavender grey, and (loose) black.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

During the reign of the Mughal emperor, Akbar (r.1556-1605) carpet production was essentially a court undertaking, and the quality, size, design and value of the Mughal carpet was dependent on the tastes and demands of the court. Akbar’s son, Jahangir (r.1605-1628) and his grandson Shah Jahan (r.1628-1658), continued to collect and patronise the arts, and Shah Jahan in 1628 introduced court decoration based on the European ‘herbaria’ for which he had enthusiasm and it was combined with the ancient theme of the Garden of Paradise. The distinctive design of the floral lattice carpets is a large sub group within that of Mughal carpets.  For a similar delicately drawn and naturalistic late 17th century floral lattice fragment of a Mughal silk carpet, previously with Julius Orendi, see Spuhler (2012), Cat. No. 40, pp.166, 167. Spuhler mentions that an unpublished fragment, in the possession of the heiress to the Alfred Cassirer Collection, was exhibited with others from the collection (without a catalogue), relatively recently in the Museum für Islamische Kunst, Berlin. The orientation of the naturalist plants, probably depicting poppies, and either roses or carnations, is the same in the Kuwait and present fragment.

For comprehensive discussion of Mughal lattice carpets, see Walker, Daniel, Flowers Underfoot: Indian Carpets of the Mughal Era, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1997, Chp. 1., India during the Mughal Era, pp.3-14, and Chp. 4, The Carpets, The Flower Style, pp.86-117, ‘Lattice and Flower Pattern’, pp.105-107, and ‘Lattice and Blossom Pattern’, pp.107-117. With reference to the Kuwait fragment cited above, Walker notes that he ‘is inclined to attribute the carpet to the time of Aurangzeb, late 17^th century, early 18^th century, and between the high flower style of Shah Jahan and the stiffly repetitive pieces of the 18^th century', ibid., Later carpet types, Silks, pp.147-150).

Interestingly there is a gilded ceiling in the Aramagh, Red Fort, Delhi, 1639-1648, (Walker, op.cit., p.89, fig. 85), which has a comparable design, with lozenge lattice overlying a delicate scroll with flowers at the centre of each lozenge, revealing the extent of the influence of the floral lattice design within the interior environments of the palaces of 17^th century India.

For another variant of a floral lattice carpet, see lot 47 in this sale.

Walker (1997): Walker, Daniel, Flowers Underfoot: Indian Carpets of the Mughal Era, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 1997, Chp. 1., India during the Mughal Era, pp.3-14, and Chp. 4, The Carpets, The Flower Style, pp.86-117, ‘Lattice and Flower Pattern’, pp.105-107, and ‘Lattice and Blossom Pattern’, pp.107-117, and Later carpet types, Silks, pp.147-150

Spuhler (2012): Spuhler, Friedrich, Carpets from Islamic Lands, The Al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait, Dar Al-Athar Al-Islamiyyah, London, 2012, Cat. No. 40, pp.166, 167