CIRCA: 1900 / pre 1900
Uncommon thickly padded four panelled Tibetan masho – or above-saddle carpet – deep purple in colour and woven using the tsuktruk weaving method.* The face has thick soft pile throughout save for the wear as to be expected in the center from being directly under the rider when over the saddle, and there is some edge-wear, but there are no repairs, and the stain seen on the back does not come through to the face of the carpet. The deep purple colour of the naturally dyed pile has been obtained from aubergine (eggplant), the warp, weft and pile are of hand-spun wool and it was made circa 1900 or possibly before. (An example of a similar piece is shown and described on pages 44 and 89 in the highly recommend book Drumze – Metamorphoses of Tibetan Weaving by F Erhard & T Wild, 2022.) It is a lovely piece with very good age that has been left in its ‘original’ state and hence would suit a collector.
*When I first encountered a very finely woven example of one of these ‘tsuktruk type’ masho carpets without the padded backing I wondered how such a ‘light’ weave could provide any protection for the rider, let alone longevity of wear. It was not until I encountered this example that I understood, as encased between the pile and the heavy backing material is copious amounts of felt like wool, as can be seen in one of the photos above.