Would You Buy Vanishing Jewels? Four responses

Barry,

I have the book. It contains four interesting "articles" which I have used. One article is by the ethnographer and contains solid scholarship. It was written in recent times however, and is of largely ethnographic interest. Another article contains scientific data about the mordents used in antique Turkoman dying. As a "dye mavin" [Marvin called me that :-) ] I found that article interesting, and possibly useful. I have a problem with many of Marvin's rugs, that is, they don't belong to me. Ha Ha. No, really, it seems that several of his rugs appear much newer than the dating in the book. Like way newer. But then several other examples are TDF. I'd say for the $45 its 3 out of 5 stars, but I don't regret adding it to the library.

Mark

I was fortunate to find a copy of Vanishing Jewels as a remainder ($10) and am impressed with it. It is not of the caliber of Mackie and Thompson, but does not pretend to be. For its time, it was a relatively comprehensive collection of a variety of weavings from the Central Asian Milieu.

The contributing authors cover a lot of ground, considering the time frame of the book and collection. As far as Turkmen, it covers a lot of ground, straying into Baluch territory and including such non-conventional (at least as far as "rugs" are concerned) items such as a suzani, a tent band and a chirpy. These items, along with a wealth of information covering such diverse topics as the actual layout of, and position of goods stored within, the traditional yurt, make the book a valuable contribution to Turkmen weaving studies.

Interestingly, even the word Turkmen is also spelled Turkoman in this volume. In addition to the rugs, a good bibliography is included, along with sections on ethnohistory, production and use of the textiles, dyes and related materials and the people and their weavings. It is probably not a "must have" book for the expert, but is a great introduction to Central Asian Weaving. I met the Amsteys at ACOR and am impressed with them as an unassuming couple with a wealth of energy and interest in oriental weavings, especially Turkmen.

Yours truly,

JPW

You have probably had lots of responses on Vanishing Jewels, but here for what they are worth, are my thoughts. It is a fine book but not necessarily one that will give you any special Tekke data. It was the first Turkmen book I bought in 1997 or 1998 (for a whopping fifty bucks, a lot given its small format and 126 pages.) Since it is the 1990 catalog of Marvin Amstey's collection in Rochester, it is organized by function of pieces rather than by tribe. So it may not be the most useful book for a tribe-specific focus. The text is interesting. (O'Bannon organized it and it has chapters on the Turkmen's customs, dyes, etc by William Irons, Paul Mushak and William A. Wood. Much of the same kind of material is available in the book Mackie and Thompson book, Turkmen in a more generous and relatively less expensive format.

The book that says the most about the Turkmen, including the Tekke, is the latest edition of the Eiland's' Oriental Rugs. You probably have it. It is an amazing book. I doubt that there is anything more comprehensive around right now,but I am by no means an expert.

As for buying Moshkova or Bogolyubov etc, you should consult John Howe or Wendel Swan. John is probably the most enthusiastic scholarly Turkomaniac around here and would know about the books and whether it is worth sinking all the money into them. You could probably just as easily find what you need at the TM library.

With best wishes for luck in this project.

Ken Thompson

For my money, VJ is one of the better books, for both the pictures -- an inspiring example of what a collector can reasonably aspire to collect over a period of time without being a Gates or an Openheimer -- and the very good essays which introduce the collection. I am not overly impressed by O'Bannon's own essay, but the others are first rate.

Stephen