Art Institute of Chicago

Shirvan Kilim

Azerbaijan, Shirvan area

Date

Last quarter 19th century

Medium

wool, plain and slit tapestry weaves; weft wrapping; cut warp fringe

Culture

Caucasus

Department

Textiles

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Flat-woven rugs or covers from the Middle East, eastern Europe, central Asia, and India, kilims are usually made in the slit tapesty technique, in which slits occur where an area of one color meets an area of another. Stepping is introduced along these lines in order to keep slits small and avoid structural weakness. Stepped or serrated edges are thus a hallmark of much kilim production. Patterns are generally geometric in nature, in harmony with the structural characteristics. This kilim, made in the Shirvan area of the southern Caucasus (present-day Azerbaijan), has a pattern featuring shield-shaped devices that probably derive ultimately from vegetal or animal-skin forms. -A Global View: Recent Acquisitions of Textiles, 2012-2016, April 8-September 5, 2016

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