Indian Carpet

Indian Carpet
General information
Name	Indian Carpet
Original name	فرش هند، قالی هند
Alternative name(s)	Indian Rug
Origin	India
Technical information
Foundation material	Cotton
Knot type	Asymmetrical (Persian)

Indian Carpet or Indian Rug is one of the eastern rugs that woven in India.
The great period of Indian carpet weaving was from about 1550 through 1740. Rugs of this period are discussed under the entry “Mughal carpets.” The Persians defeated the Mughals and sacked Delhi in 1739. Thereafter, Mughal power rapidly declined and it was only the British East India Company that fostered carpet production. Eighteenth-century carpet production was quite small. The quality of rug weaving deteriorated in the 1800s as factory production of copies supplanted the oriental rug as a creative art in the hands of craftsmen. In this period, prison labor was used to weave rugs with Mughal designs. The rug production of India increased significantly in the 1950s. In India, rugs are woven by men and boys and not by women.
Contemporary Indian rugs consist of copies of Chinese, Persian, Turkmen, and Aubusson or Savonnerie designs. They are woven with asymmetric knots on a cotton foundation with double wefts.
Nominal knot counts for contemporary rugs of India are generally shown by two numbers separated by a slash. The first number equals the number of weftwise or horizontal knots in a nine-inch span divided by ten. The number following the slash is the number of knots warpwise or vertically in a nine-inch span divided by two. For example, 7/52 indicates 70 knots per nine inches weftwise and 104 knots per nine inches warpwise. To convert this indicator to knots per square inch, multiply the first number by ten, the second number by two and divide their product by 81. Thus, (70 x 104)/81 = 90 knots per square inch. I 135 Common knot counts are 4/30, 5/40, 7/52, 9/60 and 12/60.
Indian carpet geographical locations: Agra, Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Andhra Pradesh, Benares, Bengal, Bhadohi, Calcutta, Deccan, Ellora, Gujarat, Gwalior, Himachal Pradesh, Jaipur, Jammu, Jaunpur, Kashmir, Khamariah, Kutch, Lahore, Mahabalipuram, Masulipatam, Mirzapur, Poona, Rajasthan, Sharistan, Srinagar, Uttar Pradesh, Warangel.

History

India is a country located in South Asia. Indian art and culture was introduced to the world by the Mughal Empire (1526-1858), starting in the sixteenth century. The first Mughal emperor, Babur, conquered the region in 1526 and ruled until 1530. Akbar the Great (r. 1556-1605), the grandson of Babur, cultivated artistic and cultural movements in India. Akbar established a training school for carpet weaving and miniature painting in the city of Agra. Akbar's interest and support of art continued with his successors, Jehangir (r. 1605-1627) and Jehangir's grandson, Shah Jahan (r. 1628-1658). Under these Mughal rulers, the progress of India's art and architecture was rapid.
The original carpet makers in India were immigrants from Persia, skilled weavers and artisans who moved there during the sixteenth century. Early Indian carpets feature a red background with traditional Persian Safavid carpets designs and weaving techniques. The carpets were produced in established workshops throughout northern and central India, most notably in the cities of Agra and Lahore.
Under Shah Jahan new carpet designs and motifs were introduced, such as the Lattice, Mihrab (prayer arch), Shrub, and single tree. The Polonaise carpets style was also popular. Most often the carpets had a cotton foundation and a wool pile. The asymmetric (Persian) knot was used.
The finest carpets produced in India were woven during the Mughal period, with some containing approximately two thousand knots per square inch. They were made on a silk foundation with either a pashmina or wool pile. Some carpets were woven with a silk weft and a cotton warp.
Early Indian carpets were made for court palaces, mosque interiors, and the nobility of India. In addition, silk embroideries, velvets, and flatweaves were produced under Mughal rule. By the seventeenth century Britain's East India Company was involved in India's carpet weaving industry, trading throughout Europe. With the introduction of Indian carpets to the West, Mughal designs and colorations achieved recognition and were able to compete with established Oriental weaving empires such as Persia, Egypt Mamluk, and Anatolia (Turkey).
In the seventeenth century carpet weaving expanded to the southern cities of India. The carpet industry became a successful enterprise and brought increased income to weaving families. Britain's East India Company was a continued presence in major areas and cities, and was active in producing carpets for export worldwide until the Indian Rebellion of 1857, which threatened British dominance in India.
The British Empire stepped in and regained control of India under the title of the British Raj, replacing the East India Company.
The carpet industry continued under the British Raj, from 1858 until 1947. Many cities and towns in India had established looms and carpet manufacturing, which was under the supervision of foreign exporting companies. Notable carpet producing cities during this time include Agra, Amritsar, Bhadohi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kashmir, Lahore, and Mirzapur. Large quantities of carpets and flatwoven Dhurrie carpets were produced on jail looms in major cities in India as well.
After India gained independence in 1947, carpet production continued to be a major industry throughout the country. Today India is one of the leading producers of handmade carpets worldwide, with a significant range of designs, colorations, qualities, and sizes. Indian weavers have the ability to adapt to new decorative styles and color schemes often requested by designers and consumers in the West. Popular Indian carpet designs have Mughal, Persian, Anatolian, Mamluk, French, Art Deco and other famous Oriental and European patterns. Early carpets from the Mughal period are highly regarded and preserved in respected museums and collections worldwide.

Bibliography

• Abraham Levi Moheban. 2015. The Encyclopedia of Antique Carpets: Twenty-Five Centuries of Weaving. NewYork: Princeton Architectural Press.
• Peter F. Stone. 2013. Oriental Rugs: An Illustrated Lexicon of Motifs, Materials, and Origins. North Clarendon: Tuttle.