Harvard Art Museums > 1974.58: Niche Carpet, Millefleur Type Textile Arts Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Niche Carpet, Millefleur Type , 1974.58,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Mar 23, 2025, https://hvrd.art/o/214628. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 1974.58 Title Niche Carpet, Millefleur Type Classification Textile Arts Work Type rug Date 18th century Places Creation Place: South Asia, India, Kashmir Period Mughal period Culture Indian Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/214628 Physical Descriptions Medium Wool (goathair) pile on a foundation of silk warps and cotton wefts Technique Woven with pile Dimensions 174 x 111 cm (68 1/2 x 43 11/16 in.) Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Joseph V. McMullan Accession Year 1974 Object Number 1974.58 Division Asian and Mediterranean Art Contact am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu Permissions The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request. Descriptions Description Carpets of this type have been described as “millefleur” (thousand flowers) rugs because of their profusion of floral motifs. A plethora of flowers emerge from a central vase, contained within a niche. This niche could indicate use as a prayer rug or allude to an arched gateway and signal the carpet’s function as a hanging. The goathair or pashmina pile of this carpet is particularly luxurious. This material readily absorbs dye stuffs, creating a vibrantly colored carpet. Publication History Joseph V. McMullan, Islamic Carpets (New York, 1965) David Sylvester, Islamic Carpets from the Collection of Joseph V. McMullan, exh. cat. (Arts Council of Great Britain, London, 1972), p. 41, cat. no. 31 Richard Ettinghausen, Prayer Rugs, exh. cat., The George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum (Washington, D.C, 1974), pp. 88-89, fig. 27 Walter B. Denny, Oriental Rugs, Smithsonian Institution (Washington, D.C, 1979), pp. 110-111, colorplate 26 Sheila Blair, ed., Images of Paradise In Islamic Art, exh. cat., University of Tennessee Press (Austin, TX, 1991), p. 32/27a Mr. Raoul Tschebull, "To Praise and Pray", HALI, ed. Daniel Shaffer (London, England, November 2002 - December 2002), vol.24, no.6, issue 125, pp.108-109, p. 108 Exhibition History Enter Ye the Garden: Prayer Rugs of Islam, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 05/26/1989 - 08/20/1989 Islamic Art: The Power of Pattern, Harvard University Art Museums, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 09/23/1989 - 01/17/1990 The Here and the Hereafter: Images of Paradise in Islamic Art, Hood Museum of Art, Hanover, 03/16/1991 - 05/26/1991; Asia Society Galleries, New York, 06/27/1991 - 09/06/1991; Museum of Fine Arts, Springfield, Springfield, 04/26/1992 - 06/21/1992 Earthly Paradise: Gardens in Islamic Art, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 05/08/1993 - 08/22/1993 Pattern and Purpose. Decorative Arts of Islam., Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 02/19/1994 - 07/03/1994 The Best Workmanship, the Finest Materials: Prayer Carpets of the Islamic World, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 08/03/2002 - 12/15/2002 Prayer Carpet: Beauty and Purpose, The George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum, 02/18/2023 - 07/02/2023 Verification Level This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
