The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-10-26
rHE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM.

polItan Museum of Art William X ValSn-
! timer. curator ~ decorative arts. an
} nounce- that IN. special loan exhibition
I ~ early rugs will he opened On Tuesday
! November / THIS exhibition has been
/ planned for the purpose Of increasing the
appreciate of rugs of The b--l period
the fifteenth. sixteenth aud seventeenth
centuries. and sho~ing their superiority
IN comparison with those 81 eighteenth
and nIuete-u century manufacture
Nons Of these later products will he
shown. that ~ NJ the Bokhsra. ladig.
Neles Ghlorie- or Rula looms. a. they
are already we'll known IN this country.
and by many are valued TOO highly for
the reason that they are thought to be OF
a much earlier period than they really are.
Their infeTiority IN design and color IL
apparent to one who knows the infinite
variety 81 pattern and the indiy duality Of
rugs of The earlier Weaves last spring
the exhibition NJ the Ierke- collection
offered a splendid opportunity To study
fine examples of the hest periods. In
that marvellous collection. which will
probably never he equalled. the Persian
animal rugs were an important feature.
This class Of rug will therefore be repre-
only few characteristic examples. The
plan aimed at IL the illustration of the
development 81 rug weaving in all coun-
tries Of the near Fast which have bee0
important in this art. rather than the
display of any one class Of rugs alone.
Consequently the rug weaving Of Turkey
and Of India will be represented a. we'll
as that Of Persia.
Turkish rugs will 10 represented in
three groups. namely. rugs from central
Asia Minor and Armenia. rugs from
western Asia Minor, and rugs from Syria.
few more examples Of rugs made as
early as ths fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries will lend unusual interest to
this part Of the exhibition. OF special
Importance will be a group II Indian
rugs of tn" sixteenth and seventeenth
centuries. which Il has not been possible
until recently To diferentiate from the
Persian weave- by which they were
strongly infiuenoad. OF These Indian
rugs, a group hardly represented at all
in the Yerkes collection. some 81 the
finest examples will be shown. The Kaiser
Friedrich Museum II Berlin will lend to
tho exhibition a small rug from Asia
Minor dating from the fourteenth century
which holds a highly important place in
the history Of Oriental rugs. being known
in the literature NJ the subject as the
oldest rug IN existence. The following
private collectors among others will
contribute: Benjamin Altman. the Hon.
". A. Clark. Theodore VI Davis Of New
port. DIR. Drnman ". Ross Of Cambridge
=. \ B Widener Of Philadelphia and G. r
Williams NJ Norristown, Pa. About thirty
, or forty rugs will be shown. and an illus
trated catalogue with historical intro
duction 20 the subject will bs prepared
as a guide 20 the exhibition.
In many II the Persian and Indian arts
FURNISHED gold has had an important place
for n much longer time than II has had IN
the European crafts: IN fact the incentive
20 the Use Of gliding IN manuscripts.
! leather book covers. boxes. &c. on porce-
lain. glass. metal ware. and even IN early
pain'ings. may very well have been do
rived from the study Of obJectS brou ght
| from the near Orient by the Venetian
traders. lts application to leather book
covers began. as We know. IN the SIX
teenth century. as a direct result II such
traffic. although tho scribas had used their
secret processes IN producing gilded mi
/ tails and borders IN their psalters and
books of hours long before that time
The gliding ~ the baser metals practi-
cally began ~ the end Of the seventeenth
centurv. IN answer 20 the deman for such
ornamenta'ron IN connection with the fur
nlture created by Boule. the versatile
craftSman Who NAV be said TO have IN
vented the style that bears MS name and
10 have initiated the styles Of he period
From Henry Hazards Dict onnaire lie
lAmeublement We learn that tho first
mention 81 glded metal or -Or noulu'
gilded ground gold occurs in the I'm
tree Solennells de Henri II q, Catherine
de MedIcis Rouen' IS5I. reading a. fol-
lows -1rois des elephant portoient sur
Ia bastln" lie grandz vases de bronze
recoulvertZ dor moulin pour mieuH
monstrer Umu"r, lanticque seraln de
Corinthe
There are several methods ~ gliding
metals. hut the one in general Use IN the
eighteenth century. which WAS the hey
day 81 this kind Of work. was the one de-
scnbed under the expression or moulu
II consisted 81 applying an amalgam ~
powdered gold and mercury 30 the Oh yect
and then heating u until the mercury
became volatilized when II was polished
from the Quicksilver. Was fraught with
danger "a the workmen and 80 early
claimed the attention Of tho Academy in
an effort 20 overcome its evils A. a
glance a, the products of this art would
show. ~ was m ifS origin an out growth Of
the art Of the goldsmith: indeed until the
fift"enth century the makers ~ orna ments
~ Rilded metals were included IN the
guild ~ the -orfAvre~ When the oorn.
pany Of gilders established its own rules
and chose i's patron saint IL not. how.
ever known. but ~ l. certain. 30 Hazard
tells us. that they had their autonomy IN
IN" s"y"nteenih century. At the end Of
the eighteenth century the community
occupied two streets. the Rue Dsuphin
and the Rue de In Verrerie. and mum.
bered In las some siSty-one member-
Tn" masters ~ the craft are known nv
name and in some cases their work NAV
be identified
During the eighfe~nth century the do.
r"ur dor moulin produced the metal
work which IN great PROPULSION entered
into the embellishments Of all kinds of
-Deubles,- for the home a. well "A IN.
church crosses candleaticLa k....