mid 19th century, 120 x 90 cm, western Central Anatolia, Eskisehir province

VOK Collection, Anatolia 11

This delightful small kilim is impressive on account of its powerful design vocabulary and beautiful colours. The aubergine mihrab is topped by a small, roof-like arch with an attached diamond-shaped point in the same aubergine colour. The mihrab contains two hexagons divided into triangular colour sections and, above these, two red devices attached at the sides and outlined in white cross shapes. Four of the same devices outlined in crosses are aligned horizontally in the inner elem stripe, where they appear in different colours (aubergine, blue, yellow and red). Four red shapes protrude laterally into the blue-green section above the arch. The bold house-like designs seen in the wide white-ground border are known as "kümbet" in Anatolia. Reminiscent of a yurt, their shape may be a distant memory of the nomadic origins of a tribe that became settled a long time ago. Hirsch writes that the kilim was made in a Yerli village located between Kütahya and Sivrihisar, stating that it was used as a wall niche curtain. In our opinion, the small format may indicate that the kilim was intended as a prayer rug. However, the absence of the typical signs of wear would contradict this idea. A further example of this extremely rare group is kept in the Vakiflar Museum, Istanbul (inv. no. 61). – Good condition.