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The Seley Carpet

late 16th century
Not on view
This is one of the finest Persian carpets known, produced at a time when the art of carpet weaving had achieved its greatest heights under the patronage of the Safavid shahs in the sixteenth century. Striking in the harmony of its pattern and color, this carpet combines the medallion scheme adapted from bookbindings with a field composed of a well-planned system of floral forms on scrolling vines and floating cloud bands of Chinese derivation.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Seley Carpet
  • Date: late 16th century
  • Geography: Made in Iran
  • Medium: Silk (warp), cotton (weft), wool (weft and pile); asymmetrically knotted pile
  • Dimensions: Rug: L. 280 in. (711.2 cm)
    W. 121 in. (307.3 cm)
    Tube: L. 157 in. (398.8 cm)
    Diam. 21 in. (53.3cm)
    Wt. 86 lbs. (39 kg) (carpet was weighed with 120 lb. tube at 204 lbs.)
  • Classification: Textiles-Rugs
  • Credit Line: Presented in memory of Richard Ettinghausen, Gift of Louis E., Theresa S., Hervey, and Elliot Jay Seley, and Purchase, Harris Brisbane Dick and Fletcher Funds, 1978
  • Object Number: 1978.550
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

Audio

Cover Image for 6667. The Seley Carpet

6667. The Seley Carpet

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More Artwork

More Artwork
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The Emperor's Carpet, Silk (warp and weft), wool (pile); asymmetrically knotted pile
The Emperor's Carpet
second half 16th century
The Anhalt Medallion Carpet, Cotton (warp), silk (weft), wool (pile); asymmetrically knotted pile
The Anhalt Medallion Carpet
probably first half 16th century
'Lotto' Carpet, Wool (warp, weft and pile); symmetrically knotted pile
'Lotto' Carpet
16th century
Silk Kashan Carpet, Silk (warp, weft and pile); asymmetrically knotted pile
Silk Kashan Carpet
16th century
Fragment of a Northwest Persian Medallion Carpet, Cotton (warp), wool (weft and pile); asymmetrically knotted pile
Fragment of a Northwest Persian Medallion Carpet
early 16th century

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