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Cairene carpets illustrate the union of two distinct artistic traditions
that flourished under two of the most powerful Islamic dynasties of the 15th
and 16th centuries, namely the Mamluk Sultanate and the Ottoman Empire. The
present carpet belongs to a well-known and documented group of carpets that
combines the unique structural characteristics and coloration of Mamluk
carpets with the distinct design repertoire of the Ottoman court workshops.
The history of pile-knotted carpet weaving in Egypt is uncertain, as there
is no fully developed carpet tradition recognized there prior to the
appearance of Mamluk carpets in the 15th and early 16th centuries. Mamluk
carpets are unique within all known carpets because of their distinctive
kaleidoscopic design, use of three to five muted colors and unusual weave
structure.
Ottoman Cairene carpets, share the same palette and structural
characteristics of Mamluk carpets, but employ designs created in the Ottoman
court workshops during the first half of the 16th century. These Turkish
designs were introduced to the Egyptian looms through the Ottoman conquest
of Cairo in 1517. The earliest examples that can be considered ‘Ottoman
Cairene,’ combine both Mamluk and Ottoman motifs in an uneasy marriage. By
the second quarter of the 16th century, the carpets feature wholly Ottoman
designs but continue to use Mamluk coloration and structure. Many of the
design motifs as well as the overall finesse of drawing and weave of the
carpet presented here, place it securely in the mid-16th century. The
scrolling saz-leaves lying across palmettes seen in the field can also be
found in many ceramic tiles dating to this period, most notably the tile
work in the faзade of the Sьnnet Odasi in the Topkapi palace datable to
circa 1550. The trident shaped cartouches containing tulip and carnation
blossoms seen in the medallion and corner spandrels are similar to motifs
favored by the Ottoman court artist Kara Memi in the mid-16th century.
Although Cairo was geographically far removed from Istanbul, it was an
important regional capital for the Ottomans and Egyptian artisans would have
had knowledge of the current tastes and styles of the court shortly after
they were developed.
The merging of the Mamluk weaving traditions of coloration and wool with the
Ottoman court taste, created objects that are amongst the most elegant
carpets ever woven. The beauty and majesty of these carpets was recognized
and appreciated by the European nobility and aristocracy as much as it was
by the Ottoman court. Although very few Cairene carpets are depicted in
European paintings (as is often the case with other early Eastern carpets)
to document this Western fascination, there are several references to
Cairene carpets in Western collection inventories of the period. The most
notable early European reference documents the acquisition of a Cairene
carpet by the Medici family for the Pitti Palace in 1623. Interestingly,
most of the Cairene carpets with an early European association have been
found in Italy, probably because of the active trade between Venetian
merchants and the Ottoman Empire. The scarcity of Western painted depictions
is likely due to the rarity of the carpets themselves. The size of the
present example is extremely unusual within the rare group of Ottoman
Cairene carpets. Most pieces of this type are either quite large and long
and narrow as most ‘classical’ carpets, or are rather small.
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