A Magic Carpet Ride To Rare And Valuable Rugs
Sydney Morning Herald
Monday May 20, 1991
TO CONNOISSEURS, a rug is never simply a rug. To them, it has historic, artistic and other aesthetic merits. Novices, who may know next to nothing, need to start somewhere. A good place to develop an eye for excellent rugs would be at the Rare Oriental Rugs 1991 Tribal Traditions exhibition which opened on Saturday at Nomadic Rug Traders in Pyrmont.
As Ross Langlands, owner of Nomadic Rug Traders and ancient rug specialist says, if someone is buying a valuable rug for the first time they should look at as many as they can. "It becomes confusing but then the logic of things, the artistic logic, whether it's at the tribal end or the decorative art end of the scale, it all becomes much more apparent to people.
"You have to understand the context from which the rugs come: how important they were to the people who wove them, their function, the nature of the dyes used, that's very important in learning about colour," he says.
Tribal rugs were used for every day functional uses such as storage or transportation bags. In the tents, various weavings covered the floor and special rugs were made to eat, pray or entertain upon. Many of these rugs were not kept or treasured except for those made for religious or special events such as a marriage.
The catalogue explains in layman's terms the main tribes and where they come from, the importance of different designs, the complicated system of classifying oriental rugs, tribal traditions and so on.
All the weavings, in their purpose, design and colour, are charged with a symbolic significance understood by the cultural context in which they were created.
One of the characteristics of old tribal rugs is the wide palette of clear, vibrant colour.
Throughout the nomadic tribes, carpet making was a woman's work and her work as a weaver was considered extremely valuable. A good weaver would make 10,000 knots a day.
The exhibition is made up of about 16 oriental tribal rugs, which are mostly for sale (some are part of a private collection), ranging in price from$4,000 to about $20,000, although the majority of the pieces will be in the$9,000 to $15,000 price range.
They come from a variety of sources including the Turkmen tribe, which many collectors consider to be the purest form of ancient tribal art.
The Turkmen were perhaps the most conservative of all tribal weaving groups, with a very traditional repertoire of design. Their principal motif is the gul, an octagonal medallion repeated in a grid across the field of the rug. In the 19th century, there were seven or eight major Turkmen tribes who used the gul as a kind of tribal totem.
Langlands believes that the majority of rug buyers have become far more discerning and better educated than a few years ago when the endless rug"liquidation" sales were heavily advertised. He also believes the Trade Practices Commission has been looking at the form of advertising these merchants employ. "There have been some prosecutions," he said.
For those who may wish to learn more about rugs, the launch of a new book, A Guide to Oriental Rugs by Peter Winch (Kangaroo Press, $24.95) will take place at the exhibition. The book acts as an easy-to-follow guide and it pays particular attention to the Australian market.
The exhibition is being held at Nomadic Rug Traders, 125 Harris Street, Pyrmont until June 15.
© 1991 Sydney Morning Herald
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