Ottoman style carpet

During the late 19th century, European scholars became increasingly interested in classical Oriental carpets of the 15th to 17th centuries, and it was at this time various western museums and institutions started actively to collect such pieces. This interest was spurred by the use of Oriental carpets as desirable furnishing objects by European and American patrons. This majestic carpet is a European copy of a grand Ottoman Cairene type carpet. It is based on the variety woven in Egypt after the 16th century Ottomans conquered the territory from the Mamluks. Classic Ottoman iconography such as tulips, carnations and ‘cintimani’ cloud bands are drawn against a magenta field of the same hue as the lac-derived fields of the 16th century originals. The drawing is remarkably faithful to these earlier rugs, including elements of shadowing. This provokes the interesting thought that this piece may be a direct copy of a known original.