Unexploded Ordnances: Embedded Weapons Rugs

Large Four-Medallion and Animal Motif Rug

Turkman Tribe

Ca. early 1990s

6’7” x 9’4”

This beautiful large-scale rug employs traditional motifs like geometric medallions amidst a red ground filled with small animal figures. Inserted in and around the animals are small helicopters and armored transport vehicles—difficult to make out due to the density of the patterning and embedded nature of the weapons. The trade name for this type of rug is “Khul Mohamadi,” the name of the man who initiated this modern variant of Turkmen tribal weaving. The yellow medallions are unusual, but the center dark medallion is more traditional. The tan and yellow colors are undyed wool.

Large Ali Kwaja Rug

Turkman Tribe

Ca. 1980s

6’2” x 9’

Ali Kwaja rugs have many of the characteristics of Turkmen weaving of the Beshiri sub-tribe. The snake wrapped around the lion is found in Indian batiqs though the symbolism is not yet known. The lions are traditional Persian symbols of strength, leadership and courage. Some of the birds appear to be falcons. Falconry is a kingly sport of Middle Eastern and Central Asian cultures. Horsemen similar to those woven in this design are found in the earliest known rug, the Pazyryk carpet discovered in a 5^th century B.C.E. tomb in the region of the Altai mountains bordering Mongolia, China and modern Kazakstan, the territory of the ancient nomadic Pazyryk culture.

Medium Ali Kwaja Dragons and Sword-bearing Warriors War Rug

Turkman Tribe

Ca. 1980s

3’11” x 6’8”

Again, probably Beshiri Turkmen this rug depicts the ancient motif of dragons. This rug is interesting in that it combines most of the images common to other Ali Kwaja war rugs: swordsmen, buildings, dragons, tanks, helicopters. (See rug to your left) However, the cars are unusual. All Ali Kwaja rugs are remarkable for their excellent construction and sophisticated design. It has a unique, waxy, feel due to the quality of the wool.

White Div and the Shahnama’s Rustam

Baluchi Tribe

1984 (dated at top)

4’1” x 6’3”

Rugs of this design originated very early and are believe to depict the Afghan government forces arriving in Herat from Kabul to squelch the April 1979 uprising in Herat, an event that marked a major clash between anti-Communist forces and Marxists in 25 of the 27 provinces of Afghanistan. In the center of this rug are two figures, one straddling another while a third looks on. This is a story familiar in rugs and represents a portion of the mythological story of Rustam and the White Div, characters from the Shahnama, literally “History of the Kings” of Persia. Of particular note in this rug’s design are the well-drawn camel train and the classic Persian lions.

“Embedded Weapons” Rugs

In the following seven rugs, one can see a wide range of war rugs that utilize war imagery in either highly subtle manner or inserted between traditional patterns. The weapons represented in these examples are virtually hidden amongst other iconography, or incorporated within traditional images, like horses, in the case of Rug L. Double ewer and vase motifs also appear in these designs, as in those found on the opposite wall where the “Prominent Weapons” Rugs are on display. In some cases the weapons are integrated into designs depicting deer and lions (See Rugs J, K and M). Arguable, one of the most unique rugs on this wall (Rug N) is noteworthy for its depiction of an oddly proportioned male figure, reminding us that some weavers did not follow the more fundamentalist strains of Islam that prohibit the creation of human images. Before the figure is a small fish pond and behind him a decorative, as yet unidentified, mosque. This rug was possibly woven in the Hazara-majority area of central Afghanistan. Most of these rugs incorporate animal imagery from traditional Afghan culture.

(H) Orange Animals in Black Field

Turkman Tribe

Dated 1987

3’11” x 6’4”

(I) Double-Ewers with Weapons

Zakini Tribe

1991

2’9” x 4’4”

(J) Three Vases with Four-Deer Skirt

Baluchi Tribe

Ca. 1980s

4.54’x6.08’

(K) Herati Rug with Lions and Female Figures

Baluchi Tribe

Ca. 1980s

4’5” x 7’4”

(L) Six Horses with Tank and Heli Border

Baluchi Tribe

Ca. 1980s

3’9” x 6’5”

(M) Repeating Double Deer Pattern

Zakini Tribe

Ca. 1980s

3’8” x 6’10”