By Joan Brown Wettingfeld
There is good evidence that handwoven carpets existed in antiquity. Men are depicted with the implements of rug weaving in the rock tombs of Egypt as long ago as c. 2500 B.C., and more evidence is seen in the drawings on the ancient palace walls of Nineveh.
The art of carpet weaving in the mountain regions of the east, the area from Turkey through what was Persia, central Asia, and China where the hair of sheep, camels and goats grow long and fine, as an art reached its height in the 16th century.
Oriental rugs have always been subject to the whims of fashion here in America since colonial times, but for the most part have been highly desired and prized by a vast market of buyers.
“Turkey carpets” date from the 17th and 18th centuries in the American colonies which can be seen in museum collections and restorations like Williamsburg. In colonial times only the very wealthiest could afford what were then called Turkey carpets. Family portraits of that time show that then such rugs were so precious that they often decorated table tops rather than floors.
It was a custom which persisted during the Queen Ann period which ended about 1714 in England. The use of Turkey carpets as table covers in the American colonies is documented, for example, in the 1741 portrait of the Isaac Royal family done by artist Robert Flake.
As fashions changed in America, imported Turkey carpets were placed underfoot instead of being used as table covers. A 1796 portrait of George Washington by famed artist Gilbert Stuart shows him standing on a medallion-designed Ushak carpet, At first these rugs were imported by Europeans for resale, but after the Revolution, American shippers were able to bring to the privileged few room-sized “Oriental” rugs for the floor. When used in portraiture, as in the case of Washington's painting by Stuart, the Oriental carpet symbolized the power and prestige of the subject of the painting.
From our country's earliest day, owning an Oriental rug has been a status symbol, defining wealth and good taste.
Colonial Americans used the term “Turkey carpet” because the Oriental designs originated from the Aegean port of Smyrna in Turkey. As Americans grew in wealth, more people desired and acquired Oriental rugs .
At the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, one of the most popular attractions was an exhibit of Oriental rugs. William Sloane, a New York City merchant ( founder of W. and J. Sloane) purchased the entire exhibit for more than a million dollars, a vast sum for that time, and sold then from his New York store. A $10,000 price tag on a carpet was common. It reflected the impact of Victorian industrial fortunes and the desire of society's new leaders to own a symbol of wealth.
The collecting craze for these rugs lasted until World War I, and up to that time the United States lead all other countries in importing Oriental rugs.
Over the years fashion dictates changed, and the period after World War II saw Oriental rug sales decline as “broadloom” came into favor. In recent years a generation has been rediscovering the craftsmanship and beauty of the Oriental rug and see it as a symbol of the heritage of the past. Today one of the premier sources of older rugs is from the estates and private homes of America. In the late 1970s three quarters of all Oriental rugs exported came to the United States.
People now are not only following fashion, but have learned to appreciate the heritage, history, craftsmanship and beauty of the Oriental rug or as it was once known, the “Turkey carpet.”
If you are interested in this subject. plan to attend the exhibit and sale of Oriental rugs arriving from Turkey. The event will be hosted by the Bayside Historical Society at the Officers' Club at Fort Totten, and will be held daily from Nov. 11 to 19, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $3.