2017 ArmeniaFest Theme: Armenian Carpets
By Mary Mukhtarian
Welcome to the 21st ArmeniaFest featuring Armenian Carpets, which have decorated many homes for centuries.
The term Armenian carpet usually includes all rugs woven in Armenia or by Armenians, and encompasses many other carpets recognized as Turkish, Oushak or Persian, all of which were normally made by Armenian craftsmen, the most famous of whom is Zareh Penyamian.
Traditionally, the carpets were used to cover floors, and decorate interior walls and furniture. Over time they came to reflect the beliefs and religious notions of ancient Armenians. The exceptional quality of the Armenian Carpets is due to the uniquely vivid colors used, especially red, which is only found in a special worm exclusive to Armenians; the skill of the weavers; and the special designs meticulously crafted in each rug. These include stars, medallions, animals, foliage, calligraphy and flowers. Some carpets have precious signatures, sometimes hidden in the designs, because Armenian craftsmen were proud of their work regardless of their patrons.
The oldest, single, surviving knotted carpet in existence is the Armenian Pazyryk carpet, dated from the 5th to the 3rd century BC, now in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. The common belief is that the Pazyryk rug was a funeral accessory and most likely a masterpiece of Armenian workmanship. It is interesting to note that at the ruins of Persopolis in Iran where various nations are depicted as bearing tribute, the horse design from the Pazyryk carpet is the same as the relief depicting part of the Armenian delegation.
During the Armenian Genocide, in addition to the catastrophic loss of many expert carpet weavers, thousands of Armenian children were also orphaned and transported to other locations, including a carpet factory in Beirut. Girls were taught weaving to afford them future income. Thus for a brief period "orphan rugs" were created in this factory, the most famous of which was given to President Calvin Coolidge as a gift in 1925 as a gesture of gratitude and good will towards the American people by the orphans. Known as the Armenian Orphan rug, the rug depicts a Biblical Garden of Eden featuring various animals and symbols and measuring 12 feet by 18 feet with 4 million knots. This rug is said to have been made by 400 orphans over a period of 18 months from 1924-1925. The rug was returned by the Coolidge family to the White House in 1982.
The rug was never allowed on public display, but in 1995 it was shown to Vartoohi Galezian, one of its original weavers, and her family. After many years of negotiations and bipartisan support, the Armenian Orphan Rug was finally allowed to be displayed at the White House Visitor Center in November 2014 as part of the temporary exhibition "Thank you to the United States: Three Gifts to Presidents in Gratitude for American Generosity Abroad". The display caption for the rug was criticized for avoiding mention of the Armenian Genocide or what made those children orphans.
St. Sarkis is thrilled to honor the exceptional artistry of Armenian carpet weavers. We hope you will have a greater appreciation for these ancient symbols of our nation’s resilience.
By Mary Mukhtarian
Welcome to the 21st ArmeniaFest featuring Armenian Carpets, which have decorated many homes for centuries.
The term Armenian carpet usually includes all rugs woven in Armenia or by Armenians, and encompasses many other carpets recognized as Turkish, Oushak or Persian, all of which were normally made by Armenian craftsmen, the most famous of whom is Zareh Penyamian.
Traditionally, the carpets were used to cover floors, and decorate interior walls and furniture. Over time they came to reflect the beliefs and religious notions of ancient Armenians. The exceptional quality of the Armenian Carpets is due to the uniquely vivid colors used, especially red, which is only found in a special worm exclusive to Armenians; the skill of the weavers; and the special designs meticulously crafted in each rug. These include stars, medallions, animals, foliage, calligraphy and flowers. Some carpets have precious signatures, sometimes hidden in the designs, because Armenian craftsmen were proud of their work regardless of their patrons.
The oldest, single, surviving knotted carpet in existence is the Armenian Pazyryk carpet, dated from the 5th to the 3rd century BC, now in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. The common belief is that the Pazyryk rug was a funeral accessory and most likely a masterpiece of Armenian workmanship. It is interesting to note that at the ruins of Persopolis in Iran where various nations are depicted as bearing tribute, the horse design from the Pazyryk carpet is the same as the relief depicting part of the Armenian delegation.
During the Armenian Genocide, in addition to the catastrophic loss of many expert carpet weavers, thousands of Armenian children were also orphaned and transported to other locations, including a carpet factory in Beirut. Girls were taught weaving to afford them future income. Thus for a brief period "orphan rugs" were created in this factory, the most famous of which was given to President Calvin Coolidge as a gift in 1925 as a gesture of gratitude and good will towards the American people by the orphans. Known as the Armenian Orphan rug, the rug depicts a Biblical Garden of Eden featuring various animals and symbols and measuring 12 feet by 18 feet with 4 million knots. This rug is said to have been made by 400 orphans over a period of 18 months from 1924-1925. The rug was returned by the Coolidge family to the White House in 1982.
The rug was never allowed on public display, but in 1995 it was shown to Vartoohi Galezian, one of its original weavers, and her family. After many years of negotiations and bipartisan support, the Armenian Orphan Rug was finally allowed to be displayed at the White House Visitor Center in November 2014 as part of the temporary exhibition "Thank you to the United States: Three Gifts to Presidents in Gratitude for American Generosity Abroad". The display caption for the rug was criticized for avoiding mention of the Armenian Genocide or what made those children orphans.
St. Sarkis is thrilled to honor the exceptional artistry of Armenian carpet weavers. We hope you will have a greater appreciation for these ancient symbols of our nation’s resilience.
Armenian Carpets
The following are a few examples of the art of carpet weaving by Armenians.
Information and photographs in this section is copyright, ©1984 by the Kimbel Art Museum.
The following are a few examples of the art of carpet weaving by Armenians.
Information and photographs in this section is copyright, ©1984 by the Kimbel Art Museum.
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KARABAGH RUG
Caucasian, early 30th century The design has a central medallion with small palmettes at the sides, and angular bands that enclose half palmettes at either end. The relationship between the Gohar Carpet and this design should be readily apparent, although we would describe them as part of the same tradition rather than as a direct adaptation of the same design. Schurmann, suggested that pieces with this pattern, were woven by Kurds, but the accumulating number of such rugs with Armenian inscriptions suggests that they represent Armenian work, and the Gohar Carpet adds further support for this idea. This design appears in such a variety of different colors and structures that it was undoubtedly woven in a number of villages. KARABAGH RUG, SUNBURST DESIGN Caucasian, second half of the 19th century Inscription: 1909 Sop'i carpet Isan Shak'arian |
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KARABAGH RUG, THE GOHAR CARPET Caucasian, 18th century This famous rug, called the "Gohar carpet" after the name of the weaver, is an extremely important historical document with a colorful history. The rug was noticed first when it appeared in 1899 in London where it was photographed at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and it was subsequently published by F.R. Martin in 1908. Afterwards, however, it dropped from sight and did not resurface until 1977, when it was sold at auction in London by LeFevre and Partners. During the time when the carpet's whereabouts were unknown, it continued to elicit comment from historians of the art, particularly since the inscription seemed to provide an early date. The design of the Gohar Carpet with large elaborate palmettes and medallions relates it to the Kasim Ushag tradition, which, in turn, places it in the context of an extensive series of Caucasian rugs with similar designs that probably began to be made in the seventeenth century and extended into the early nineteenth century. The large palmette designs at each end of the vertical axis are characteristic of these rugs, as are the yellow-field bands at their sides. The central medallion, the four smaller palmettes in the fields at the sides, and the border on the Gohar are all consistent with design elements found in rugs of the seventeenth or eighteenth century. The same border appears on a Dragon rug in the collection of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. Certainly there is no question of its success as a work of art. In balance of design, color , texture and composition, the Gohar must be ranked as an extremely successful and appealing carpet. The Armenian provenance -which can hardly be questioned given the inscription- would seem to help relate a much larger group of rugs to the Armenian weaving tradition. KARABAGH RUG, THE GOHAR CARPET
Caucasian, 18th century Inscription: I, gohar, full of sin and weak of soul, with my newly learned hands wove this rug. whosoever reads this say a word of mercy to God for me. In the year 1149 (1700 A.D) |
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KARABAGH RUG, SUNBURST DESIGN Caucasian, second half of the 19th century Although the inscription is vague, it does serve to confirm the attribution of this rug to Armenian workmanship. The white-field bands flanking the central medallion are traceable to a series of large eighteenth-century rugs with sunburst and enlarged palmette figures. By the late nineteenth century, it is common to see only repeated sunburst medallions. It is instructive to compare the differences in color and subsidiary detail between this medallion and the example from the Virginia Muesum dated 1850. KARABAGH RUG, SUNBURST DESIGN Caucasian, second half of the 19th century Inscription: Ani |
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KAZAK RUG, SEVAN KAZAK DESIGN Caucasian, late nineteenth century Kazak Rugs with this large, lobed medallion in the center of an often red field are known by a variety of names including Cross Kazak, Shield Kazak and Sevan Kazak. The latter term, which was used by Schurmann, is derived from Lake Sevan located northeast of Yerevan. Subsequently the name has been used for these pieces even when they have the dark brown wefts characteristic of many Karabagh village works. Clearly the design is one that was used over a wide area, but this piece, which has red wefts, would appear to merit the Kazak label. Nevertheless, the design in the corner rectangles is the familiar Sunburst medallion centers which is a Karabagh motif. The central shield-like device is thought by some to relate to the floor plan of Armenian churches. This rug establishes the fact that some classic Caucasian designs were woven by Armenians, and it confirms the impression that Armenian rugs were part of the mainstream rug production in the nineteenth century rather than the periphery. KAZAK RUG, SEVAN KAZAK DESIGN Causasian, late nineteenth century Inscription: Armin Sina (?) (Although the Armenian letters seem clear enough, they could not be made into recognizable words.) |
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KAZAK RUG
Caucasian, early twentieth century Rugs with a red-blue-white color scheme are characteristic of a region somewhat north and east of Yerevan in the Kazak region of Armenian SSR. The design on this rug is probably the most common among the several types that are woven in this area. Unlike many Kazak designs, however, the examples of this design that have appeared all show such a similar palette and structure that one is tempted to think they were produced in only one village or group of villages. The flowers are so stylized it is impossible to say how the design evolved, although the arrangement of the central red lozenge and the two blue/green triangles at their ends suggests that it may have developed from a classic medallion and anchor format, which consists of a central lozenge with separate smaller triangular forms above and below the points of the lozenge. KAZAK RUG Caucasian, early twentieth century Inscription: Atamian Ghu(kas) died at age 62 in 1901 |
