Ashmolean Eastern Art Online, Yousef Jameel Centre for Islamic and Asian Art

The art of carpet-weaving developed among the nomadic peoples of Central Asia and was not indigenous to India, whose climate discouraged the use of woolen pile rugs as floor coverings. The manufacture of carpets probably began under the early Mughal emperors, especially Akbar, who, according to Abu’l Fazl in the ‘Aīn-i Akbarī, “has caused carpets to be made of wonderful varieties and charming textures; he has appointed experienced workmen, who have produced many masterpieces … All kinds of carpet-weavers have settled here, and drive a flourishing trade. They are found in every town, but especially in Agra, Fatehpur and Lahore.” Akbar’s weavers probably came from Herat (in modern Afghanistan), and the Persian influence on Mughal carpet design remained strong during the 17th century, when many of the finest examples were produced, although overlaid by the characteristic Mughal taste for bold floral decoration which developed under Jahāngīr and Shāh Jahān. By the 18th century designs were becoming more rigid, but a high level of technical quality remained.

The repeating floral pattern of this very well preserved and finely knotted rug, with its symmetrical groups of flowers and serrated lancet leaves on a dark wine-red ground, derives from a classical Herati model. The border of lotus buds and flowers, however, is of Indian inspiration; the same design is found on two similar rugs in the Metropolitan Museum, New York, and another which was sold at Christie’s in 1981.