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26
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26. 26R A woven wool pictorial carpet depicting Mother Armen…
26
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26. 26R A woven wool pictorial carpet depicting Mother Armen…
Estimate €2,000 - €3,000
Voluntary lot
Description
26. 26R A woven wool pictorial carpet depicting Mother Armenia
Persia, probably Kirman, circa 1900
of rectangular form, the cotton warp knotted in polychrome wools with a central panel depicting Mother Armenia amidst the ruins of her twelve ancient capitals, possible Armenian inscription
61 x 81 cm.
The allegorical representation of Armenia as a weeping mother amongst city ruins was popularised by the poster of writer and reformer of the Armenian alphabet, J. Aramean. This image was published and distributed widely in the 1861 issue of Paris Weekly. It consequently became synonymous with Armenia throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries with reproductions on carpets, stamps, posters and postcards. For further discussion, see 'The Images of the City in Armenia: Anthropological perspective', Urbis et Orbis, vol. 3 (1), 2023, pp. 82-96.
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