The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-01-27

lsheu Work. Inc chapter on dyeinS is one
OF the most interesting, both ir its infor>
nation and from the fact that the secrets
of this art are even more in danger than
those of the weaving and designing of the
carpets. The old vegetable and animal
dyes are being supplanted by the products
of the chemists laboratory, and the result
is distinct loss both in durability and
beauty. The author states that when ami
line preparations were first introduced the
Eastern Governments warred energeti-
cally against them, and IT was ordered, in
one part of Persia, that any dyer convict
ed OF using such degenerate products
should have his right hand cut off. There
is even now a law in Persia ;ainst their
use, the first promulgated by the present
Shah since his accession; and since the.
first of the year several large consign-
ments of anilines have been seized and de-
stroyed in obedience to 1t. Mr.. Mumford
prophesies that as consequence of the
strict enforcement of this law. it will be
found within two or three years that Per-
sian rugs will improve in coloring, and the
coiors will not run. The delicacy and In
tricacy of the art of the Oriental dyer
may be seen by this extract from the
chapter devoted to the subject:
The great display of skill, after the actual
decoctlng and mixing of the fluids lies in
accurate estimation of the length of time that
yarn should be subjected to each solution. II
Is on precisely the principle, and alto
getner as delicate and important task, the
timing OF a Photographic plate. Away at the
back OF each shop is ladder leading from the
dye-room to the roof. where the yarns hung
to dry. How long dyed skein should hang in
the sun IS another question of moment Passing
through the square, ON bright day, you may see
shr rood aT Nl.nar fnta-
lislments, staring at the suspended skeins. As
long as the yarn hangs there the master stands
sentinel There is particular instant when the
suns work is lone, and done properly. When it
comes 1t finds the dyer guard, and he hurries
the skeln to cover in a twinkling minute
too soon. or minute too late, and the rest Of
his professional existence would he fast grey
All these complexities Of his craft the accom-
plished artiEan carries in his head He keeps
no tell-tale book of recipes. In a frame in the
outer room are displayed the different tints of
which he is master. The number of them IS
bewildering. 1t is not unusual for an al boyaji
to be skilled in some hundreds of shades OF red,
any one Of which he can set about compromising
at minutes notice, without thought of refer
ence TO any aids or authorities
These chapters, however are really only
the prelude to the main part of the book,
in which the various schools of design and
their origin are discussed. So great is the
variety of these, and so complicated their
development. that ii is almost impossible
to give any idea of the succeeding chap
tiers within the limits of a newspaper
view. especially one in which illustrations
of the various devices are not used. There
is, as the author shows. hardly a device,
however simple, in the whole range of ORR
entail weaving, which has not its signif-
canoe both from artistic and religious
point of view. Moreover, the way in
which these devices are combined and
used shows unmis takably the habit of
thought and the character of the people to
which the weaver belonged. Thus, the
Persian rug. which has already been
shown 10 be influenced in its development
by Italian art in the fifteenth century, is
infinitely complicated and ornate. All va
cant spaces in the design are covered with
trailing vines and connected floral figures
whereas the nomad weaver of the noun
tains and steppes of central Asia either
leaves the space blank or covers it with
stemless and disjunct flowers. And so of
other details.
One simple device which is to be found
in most Persian and great many nom
Persian rugs has been a source of consid-
cradle puzzling conjecture. 1t is gener-
ally known as the ''pear-shape' and that
/ *.
pears also in Kashmir shawls and other
Oriental fabrics. Reduced to its simplest
form it is an irregular triangle with
rounded corners. The author of the pres
ent volume traces 1t to it's almost certain
origin. which is. of course, religious. In
the beginning the church and the state
are always. united The king is priest.
So, in the crown of the early Persian king,
4 her lsbu iLa
the 'pear-shape" familiar to collectors
of pearls and other Oriental stones. The
element held sacred must symboically
adora the brow of the king. The shape of
these jewels is exactly the same as that
of the device found on the rug; and it Is
practically certain, therefore. that this ir-
regular triangle is a relic of the fire-wor-
ship of one of the oldest forms OF faith on
the globe.
The origin OF the swastika, supposed to
be the source of the key pattern ornament
of Greek and Chinese art, is less easily
discovered. That 1t is some sort of mys-
teal symbol intended as a charm 20 Sc
cure good fortune, is certain. 1t is found
among all prehistoric ruins; and it adorns
the Outward Bound edition of the
works of Kipling, in conjunction with the
head of the elephant, which is the good
luck sign for books. Besides the sw&stika
and the cone-shaped flame, there is the
latch hook the fsh-which may have
some connection with the sacred fish of
Chaldea-and now and then, but not often,
the cross 1t is a remarkable fact upon
which the author comments, that nineteen
hundred years of Christianity, which had
so marked an effect upon European art,
have had no effect upgn the art of the
East. No Christian symbols are TO be
found anywhere in the Oriental rug. The
symbol of the cross is older than Chris
tianity, and is, even without its slgnif-
canoe, a simple geometrical device which
would naturally be used to some extent.
The trefoil, and the other devices which
appear In such Numbers in Christian arch
itecture, have never found place in the
weaver's treasure-hOuse of designs The
arch appears in the Oriental prayer rug,
and the tree of life is an Assyrian de.
sign. but both of these antedate not only
Christianity. but Judaism.
Even the shape and size OF the true rug
of the Orient is significant. The only
natural shape for this is long and narrow;
for in an Eastern apartment the floor is
divided into sections and each rug marks
some social distinction. The author re-
marks upon a popularity which he found
In the antique hearth rug of Konieh.
which has a wonderful warm, rich color,
and the hues of which take on a luminous
quality when exposed to a slanting light,
such as that of the fire, which they do not
have under the direct rays of the sun.
Even so subtle an effect as this was worth
the thought and care OF the infinitely pa