Woolen carpet with millefleurs decoration early 1600s India, Mughal, Kashmir, 17th century Asymmetrical knot: pashmina (wool) Average: 292.7 x 248.9 cm (115 1/4 x 98 in.) Dudley P. Allen Fund 1936.17 DESCRIPTION This tour de force of Mughal weaving sets symmetrically intertwined flowering vines against a deep wine-red ground. The small-scale flowers that fill the ground space appear to be so numerous that this type of pattern is given the name millefleurs, “thousand flowers” in French, after a type of medieval European tapestry pattern. The use of pashmina wool indicates that this work was made in Kashmir, near the foothills of the Himalayas in northern India. They lend a silken sheen that augments the carpet’s luxurious quality. Mughal carpets of this type were prized by Europeans and Americans during the 18th and 19th centuries. PROVENANCE Sultan Abdul Aziz; Henry G. Marquand, Esq CITATIONS The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 784 archive.org The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 240 archive.org The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 240 archive.org The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 311 archive.org EXHIBITION HISTORY Autumn Flower Show. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 1-December 1, 1935). The Twentieth Anniversary Exhibition: The Official Art Exhibit of the Great Lakes Exposition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 26-October 12, 1936). India's Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 2, 1949-January 22, 1950). Art and Stories from Mughal India. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (July 31-October 23, 2016).