The above title has been usurped from a paperback by Horatio Alger who was a prolific author of "Penny Dreadfuls" at the turn of the century. All of his literary efforts projected the same theme. These showed how a young man from humble circumstances through honesty, courage, perseverance and industry achieved financial success and happiness in that order.

Fragments of classical carpets became popular with a certain group of middle-class collectors at the beginning of this century who could not compete with the Rothchilds, Fricks, et al for complete specimens. A fairly recent development in the field of my great obsession has been a renaissance of this interest which might well be named "The Lure Of The Fragment" At this point, it should be remembered that the style in collecting was set originally by academicians like Von Bode, Sarre, Trenkwald, etc. who were the first modern promoters of the Oriental carpet. The chief concern of this ilk was the art-historical importance of these textiles. Under these circumstances, it made very little difference whether a rug, under discussion, was complete or just a fragment. If one examines "Islamic Carpets" by Joseph V. McMullen, one readily may observe the pervasive influence this clique exerted on the collectors of the early 20^th century. Today, more and more of these dilapidated remnants are being featured in exhibitions and the literature. This is the result of strenuous promotion by "Hali" and those dealers who have a large stock of cheaply-acquired of such items!

A case in point is "Connoisseur’s Choice - THE VAKIFLAR DOMES AND SQUINCHES CARPET", as represented by John Eskanazi which appeared in the 32^nd issue of the magazine. His emotional response to this tattered remnant of what once must have been a splendid creation verges on the orgiastic. Another instance may be seen in plate 2 of the catalogue "Antike Anatolishe Teppiche 1" by the "Society for Textile Art Research Vienna" in 1983 wherein a highly truncated and abused Medallion Ushak is displayed. The only possible excuse for including this wreck in any exhibition might be that it is of great art-historical importance and extremely rare. Neither of these circumstances exist in this case! Again, in "Antike Orient. Teppiche II", plate 37, we note the pitiful remains of a 19^th C. Turkish rug which was once a splendid specimen. In the same source, plate 38 displays a Kurd piece, of similar age, with a monotonous field design which has lost one longitudinal border and with reduced end borders. Certainly, we may assume that more suitable examples were available. It would appear obvious that the exhibitors were not overly concerned with aesthetic considerations!!!

I assume that that these properly owned artifacts were chosen over many more-satisfying weavings!

Mythology has it that an ancient Greek, yclept Diagnose, walked about, holding a lit lantern aloft. When asked what he was doing, he replied, "I am looking for an honest man." It is my considered opinion that the great passage of time has caused this tale to be garbled. My thought is that Diogones was planning an exhibition of collector-carpets and was looking for honest and objective judges !!!

That this insidious lure is not confined to piled carpets may be seen in "Anatolische Kelims" by Bertram Frauenknecht in plates 14 and 15. He describes the former as "A great fragment of a wonderful early madallon kelim". (His spelling and my emphasis) I fail to understand how anyone, who is not totally blind, can conceive such an extremely impaired textile as "great". Another series of examples may be seen in "Flatweaves" by Belkis Balpinar and Udo Hirsch. Here tattered rags are featured in plates 14, 17, 21, 25, 75, 97 and 112 to 120 inclusive. It is my understanding that Ms. Balpinar is an ethnologist and Mr. Hirsch is a photographer. It is obvious that aesthetics is not their chief interest! Incidentally, the book clearly reveals their lack of knowledge and that is exceeded only by their audacity in writing it! I urge those of my readers, who are concerned with these textiles, to compare this uninspired material with the thorough treatment given by Yanni Petsopolous in his excellent work "Kilims". The lady in question also has written a very good book, "Kilim-Cicim Zili-Sumak" which deals with the structure of various types of flat-weaves. Having previously read "The Primary Structure of Fabrics" by Irene Emory, the pioneer in this field, I realized that Ms. Balpinar is extremely competent in reading English!

Daniel S. Walker in his book, "Oriental Rugs of the Haji Babas", relates the story of the "Der Kazarian Carpets. In 1939, Harry Weaver gave a paper on these items. Der Kazarian was a repairer of Oriental rugs whose sole skill was in patching damaged carpets. To this end, his shop was stocked with a seemingly limitless supply of rags and tatters which he used to patch other rugs. As a result, only the tattered wrecks in his possession could be proclaimed true Der Kazarian specimens. Weaver defined this species in the following way: ‘Perhaps the first thing the observer notes about a Der Kazarian is its remarkable openwork effect….The claim that it is the best ventilated rug in the world is no idle boast. It anticipates by centuries the modern craze for ventilation and air-conditioning. Hung on a line in the stiffest breeze it will not even tremble. Hung on the wall, it reveals more wall than rug. To some this might be considered a disadvantage, but to a true Der Kazarian addict it is hailed as a sure and delightful proof of the genuine article." Harry Weaver’s humorous anecdote was intended as a spoof of the fragment-lovers of that time. It was appropriate then and it is even more so now! Without hesitation, I proclaim Mr. Eskanazi’s "Connoisseur’s Choice and all the rest of the rags, alluded to herein as true Der Kazarian specimens and excellent examples of this prestigious category! At the Fifth International Conference on Oriental Carpets, I was standing with two fellow aficionados viewing such a dilapidated remnant. I asked them, "What is the difference between an outworn , holed and faded fragment created in 1952 and a similar piece made in 1552? I then answered my own question, "The former is an old rag and the latter is an antique rag!!!" My fellow hobbyists did not agree with me. My next query the was, "If it were for sale, would you buy it?" After some hesitation, both replied "No"! My last question, one made popular in the army, "Why don’t you put your money where your mouth is??"

As an individual, who has a deep interest in psychology, I long pondered over what possible reason could exist for the attraction that these paltry pieces seem to have for apparently normal people. My conclusion was they were imbued with the Dadaist philosophy of art appreciation. This was a movement at the turn of the century which negated all previous concepts and maintained that the more a work of art depended on and demanded from the fantasy of the viewer, the greater it was. I now could comprehend that the more incomplete a remnant is, the more is required from the observer’s imagination, the greater must be its eminence! I am certain that any true Dadaist would consider the textile, illustrated as plate 116 in "Flatweaves" as one of the most beautiful artistic creations in existence. Applying reductio ad absurdum, the ne plus ultra exhibited carpet well might be depicted as a blank space without a title. In this way, the fantasy of the onlooker would given the freest rein to supply both! 

The next point of discussion is the question of rarity. Is not a fractional portion of a rug, a type for which there is no complete specimen extant, important and consequently a collectible. The answer is: For the art-historian "Yes" but for the average collector "No"!! The writer assumes that the most important attribute which a rug can have is the aesthetic satisfaction it may offer. It is certain that there were many contemporaries of Rembrandt who painted far fewer pictures. Some of these rare works of less-talented artists survive in minor European castles, unhonored and unsung. However rare these may be, this ilk is neither desired nor collected! The demand for the works of the great masters indicates that the paramount onus of any work of art is its aesthetic values!!

Most serious lovers of Oriental weavings regard these as aesthetic valuables, Dividing artistic creations into the categories of "Fine Arts" and "Applied Arts" is an outworn and passe cliché! It assumes that the former consists of creations whose only function is to provide aesthetic satisfaction, sometimes dubiously, whereas the latter provide some other useful purpose. Those who are still obsessed by this moribund concept, believe that "Fine Arts" is superior to "Applied Arts" Following this philosophy of art appreciation would make Andy Warhol’s "Tomato Can" greater than the marvelous silk Mamaluke carpet in Vienna’s Museum of Applied Art! It is not necessary to belabor the point. Deponent Rests!

What aesthetic values does Mr. Eskanazi’s dream fragment have to offer? This pitiful, abused residue is a far cry from the original creation. It is contended, and rightly so, that these relics may be of importance to art-historians in their study of carpet design and its connection to that of related arts such as architecture.

However, most collectors are NOT art-historians who are unconcerned with aesthetics!!! For the overwhelming majority of aficionados, the Oriental rug’s beauty is the first and foremost consideration.

The true collector loves the artifacts with which he lives. THEIR BEAUTY ENRICHES HIS LIFE AND REFRESHES HIS SOUL!!! It is difficult to accept the idea that such items as shown in "Antike Orientteppiche II" as plates 5 and 17 could do this!

People, who have disagreed with me, have asked, "Is not the Venus de Milo a great work-of-art even if it has lost its arms?" I rule this question out as being irrelevant, immaterial and incompetent because the Venus is three-dimensional art and the Oriental rug is basically two-dimensional. It would be much more fitting to compare it to the art of painting. I ask you, gentle reader, if you have ever visited an art museum or attended or such an exhibition and been exposed to faded, worn and holed fragments?? Why is the acceptance of these derelicts being forced down our throats via insidious promotion!!! There is no doubt that those dealers who own stocks of these cheaply-acquired rags are highly gratified with this activity, not to mention the collectors, who could not afford complete specimens and had bought these pieces when they deservedly were of little monetary value! The latter are overjoyed that fragments are being considered practically equal in value to complete similar carpets and with the sharp increase in the worth of their collections!! They are, of course, enthusiastic fans of this new art form.

One of the most enthusiastic supporters of this nonsense is Friedrich Spuhler as can be seen in "Alte Orientteppiche" by Martin Volkmann. The former holds forth, after quoting Lu-Shihua’s three qualities of the revered fragment, "Of course, this does not in any way mean that an intact work of art does not possess these three qualities, but they are more apparent in a fragment. As the latter is the result of destruction, of long use, wear itself does not affect these attributes. Quite the contrary, it makes them more manifest." From the same source, "When a carpet no longer fulfills its original function as a domestic article, a new criterion of values opens for it: on the condition that it is a work of art, its ideal value increases as its service value decreases." (My emphasis) Again, "The love of ruins in the age of romanticism must not be forgotten as paving the way for appreciating fragments. In both cases a wave of compassion and yearning overcomes us." Fortunately, this age had a very short life span! I cannot help thinking that Mr. Spuhler is motivated by a stern dedication to self-welfare!! My great regret is that there are so many Spuhlers in our field!!!

At this instance, it must occur to my reader that the vast majority of collectors, like myself, devote themselves exclusively to old or antique rugs. It would seem that, since condition plays such an important role for us, a simple solution would be to collect new pieces. The reason we eschew them is that age may add a beauty to a textile which is totally above and beyond that of a recent product. What originally was a solid color, develops through the years a multitude of nuances which gives it a surface-interest that was lacking when new. With reasonable use, the fine wool achieves a sheen that the English call "Icy". Also, it should be noted that the rug must originally have been of excellent quality to have lasted these many years. We should remember that the older rugs, especially tribal weavings, are more apt to incorporate the true cultural tradition of their creators. It now becomes evident why old carpets, in acceptable aesthetic condition, are in great demand and fetch far higher prices than their modern counterparts. In this connection, it is obvious that one must take into account some defects. The paramount consideration must be, if restoration is required, will the beauty of the piece be enhanced. IF WE REGARD THE ORIENTAL RUG AS AN ARTISTIC CREATION, ITS AESTHETIC QUALITIES MUST BE OUR FIRST CONCERN!!!

In conclusion, let us contemplate this artistic creation. It begins in the MIND of the weaver who then proceeds to actualize her conception. It should be noted that I am NOT alluding to factory-produced carpets regardless from which century these stem. It goes without saying that today’s surviving, abused remnants are a far cry from their original conceptions! Whatever these might represent to present-day Fragment-Fanatics, these have little in common with the latter! CONSIDERING THE ORIENTAL CARPET AS A WORK OF ART, WE MUST CONDEMN THESE ABORTIONS!!!

My reader well may wonder why I chose this title for my article. It is my intention to uncover the manifest goal of the merchants and editors who promote the appreciation and SALE of these tattered relics. I am certain that there will be many who disagree with me. Your comments, negative or positive, are welcome!
 
 

Sam