Mughal carpets (Moghul or Mogul carpets) were the handwoven floor coverings used in the Mughal Empire in their courts. Mughal carpets and rugs have their roots in India since the 16th and 17th centuries. Mughal carpets were a blend of Persian and Indian artistry uniquely designed with scenic landscapes, floral, and animal patterns. Kashmir was producing the finest wool and silk carpets and rugs, including prayer rugs. Sometimes the knot density in these rugs was so fine and tight as 300 knots per square centimeter.
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The Mughal emperors were enthusiastic about textile materials, especially the third Mughal emperor Akbar who set numerous imperial workshops across India. He also arranged training of local artisans to improve the skill. In addition to textile, the manufacturing of carpets was an important industry. [1][2][3][4][5][6]
Production
editMughal carpets are thought to have been produced in various locations, including Agra, Lahore, and Fatehpur Sikri.[7] The karkhanas of carpet, rugs, tents, and various other floor coverings was called Farrash khana.[8]
In the Mughal period, the production of carpets went beyond being merely an economic pursuit. Instead, it was intricately connected with the refined preferences of the royalty, societal traditions, and the artistic principles cherished within the Islamic realm.[9]
Farsh-i-chandani
editNur Jahan is credited with popularizing farsh-i-chandani, a sandalwood-colored carpeting style, which gained widespread popularity throughout the country during her reign.[10] Heinrich Blochmann characterised it with a sandalwood hue, whereas Samsam ud Daula Shah Nawaz Khan referred to it as a silvery carpet.[11]
Farsh-i-chandani was also used in Mughal Harem.[12] The elegantly embellished ceiling and floor colors of the tomb of I'timād-ud-Daulah offer a glimpse into the potential aesthetics of the Farsh-i-Chandani carpet, which is associated with Nur Jahan's distinctive fashion sensibility.[13]
Special Mentions
editThe Girdler's carpet is one of the best-documented examples of Mughul carpets.[14][15]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ '' Farrash khana ( furniture tents and carpets ) '' Page 174 Karkhanas Under the Mughals, from Akbar to Aurangzeb: A ...books.google.co.in › books Tripta Verma · 1994
- ^ Hoiberg, Dale (2000). Students' Britannica India. Popular Prakashan. p. 23. ISBN 978-0-85229-760-5.
- ^ Bloom, Jonathan; Blair, Sheila S.; Blair, Sheila (2009-05-14). Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art & Architecture: Three-Volume Set. OUP USA. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-19-530991-1.
- ^ "Mughal carpet". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2021-01-04.
- ^ Walker, Daniel S.; N.Y.), Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York (1997). Flowers Underfoot: Indian Carpets of the Mughal Era. Metropolitan Museum of Art. pp. 117, 183, 185, 196. ISBN 978-0-87099-788-4.
- ^ Ibn-Mubārak, Abu-'l-Faḍl (1873). "The" Ain i Akbari : 1.
- ^ "Mughal carpet | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2023-05-18.
- ^ Verma, Tripta (1994). Karkhanas Under the Mughals, from Akbar to Aurangzeb: A Study in Economic Development. Pragati Publications. p. 32. ISBN 978-81-7307-021-1.
- ^ Aalum, Parweg (2014). "From Royal Display to Economic Motive: A Study of the Carpet Making in the Mughal India". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 75: 262–269. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 44158389.
- ^ MOhamed Nasr. Nur Jahan_ Empress of Mughal India. p. 222.
- ^ Sarker, Kobita (2007). Shah Jahan and His Paradise on Earth: The Story of Shah Jahan's Creations in Agra and Shahjahanabad in the Golden Days of the Mughals. K.P. Bagchi & Company. p. 156. ISBN 978-81-7074-300-2.
- ^ Das, Nandini (2023-03-16). Courting India: England, Mughal India and the Origins of Empire. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 297. ISBN 978-1-5266-1567-1.
- ^ MOhamed Nasr. Nur Jahan_ Empress of Mughal India. p. 222.
- ^ Bell, James Elton; Bell, Frances Jean (2007). Sir Robert Bell and His Early Virginia Colony Descendants: A Compilation of 16th, 17th, and 18th Century English and Scottish Families with the Surname Bell, Beale, Le Bel ... Et Al. Wheatmark, Inc. p. 95. ISBN 978-1-58736-747-2.
- ^ Irwin, John (1962). The Girdlers' Carpet. order of the Court of Girdlers Company.