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Ames Mughal Carpet Technical Details

Indian Hunting Carpet

Mughal India Circa 1595

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Gift of Mrs. Fredrick L. Ames in Memory of Fredrick L. Ames.

Warps - white cotton, Warp: 8 ply. (Warps are Z7S and Z8S ply see notes)

Wefts - reddish brown cotton, 3 ply, 3 shoots. (Walker calls the color apricot)

Pile - sheep's wool 2, 3, and 4, ply. (Walker says Z2)

Knot count - 19 Horizontal, 20 Vertical, 380 Knots per square Inch or roughly 6080 knots per square Decimeter. (Walker says 20 h x 23 v for 460 knots per square inch.)

Sides - traces of red wool overcasting (Walker)

Ends - plain weave band (Walker)

Size - 8 feet by 5 feet. 1. (Walker says 7 ft. 11 5/8 in. by 5 ft. 5/8 in.)

The rug now has an attached backing.

(For comparison Widener Technical Description)

The age of this rug has been called into question by Ellen Smart. Ellen also spotted that I had the image reversed.

Authors Note:

I have not personally examined this carpet. Julia Bailey of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston was kind enough to give me these technical details in a telephone conversation. Julia noted that the rug has had a backing applied that makes examination difficult. These details are based on the Sarre and Trenkwald structural analysis from "Old Oriental Carpets" Vienna, 1926 to 1929. At a later point I came in and added differences that came out in Daniel Walkers structural analysis in Flowers Underfoot. I must note that the Walker analysis is tentative, what ever that is supposed to mean. I decided to leave the Sarre and Trenkwald structural analysis and add the Walker differences.4

Note: I recently spoke to Daniel Walker 3. at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Dr. Walker was kind enough to confirm my suspicions that this rug must have variation in ply counts in the warps. I neither asked nor did he volunteer any other structural details since he will publish his complete structural analysis later this year (due fall 1997).

1. Stone, Peter. The Oriental Rug Lexicon. (Seattle, University of Washington Press, 1997). page 9.

2. Bailey, Julia. Personal telephone communication, August 1997

3. Walker, Daniel. Personal telephone communication, August 1997

4. Walker, Daniel. Flowers Underfoot. (New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1997) p. 163-164

For Further Reading:

Guide to Rugs & Books

La Miniature En Orient

Southwest Asia Time Line

Thanks and best wishes,

J. Barry O'Connell Jr.

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