Ushak Medallion carpet, Turkey, 17th century. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Indjoudjian Frères

Ushak Medallion carpet, Turkey, 17th century. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Medium:Wool (warp, weft, and pile); symmetrically knotted pile
Dimensions:Rug: H. 234 1/2 in. (595.6 cm) W. 132 in. (335.3 cm)
Credit Line:Rogers Fund, 1908
Accession Number:08.173.13
Not on view

Made in large numbers and hugely popular both in the Ottoman empire and in Europe, medallion Ushak carpets such as this were produced from the later fifteenth century to the eighteenth. The design in theory repeats infinitely in all directions, although "cut" by the border. It consists of ogival medallions alternating with smaller eight-lobed "stars."

Provenance:[Indjoudjian Frères, Paris, until 1908; sold to MMA] - Indjoudjian Frères was an antiquities dealership in Paris and New York between 1920 and 1950. Indjoudjian Frères was owned by the Armenian Indjoudjian brothers, Agop (1871–1951) and Meguerditch (1884–1927); the dealership closed in 1951 with the death of Agop Indjoudjian.

References:
Dimand, Maurice S., and Jean Mailey. Oriental Rugs in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1973. no. 76, pp. 188, 222, ill. fig. 166 (b/w).