Homes Antiques

I

n spring Uttar Pradesh

in northern India reveals

a flat landscape scattered

with emerald green plots

of wheat. Acid yellow flowers

from mustard seed punctuate the

horizon as women in hot pink

sarees tend their crops. As one of

India’s largest states – over 200

million people live here – it’s an

extraordinary sight vibrant with

activity. This rural landscape

is home to the best rug weavers

in India and everyone here is

engaged in some way or another

with the very detailed and

complex business of making rugs.

This specific region of

Mirzapur and Bhadohi is the hub

of production and dates back to

the 16th century during the reign

of the Mughal emperor Akbar.

Rug weaving has particularly

flourished here since the late

1880s and everything is done

by hand on a staggering scale.

Small workshops are tucked away

across cities towns and rural

hamlets. One hundred per cent of what’s produced is exported

across the world and the craftsmanship can be exceptionally

high. Provenance is so important to Western consumers and

an increased transparency surrounding how these products are

made is essential. There is still

a surprising assumption in the

UK that conditions are generally

poor and weavers are badly paid

• or worse still that children
  are part of the workforce. In
  reality it’s the opposite; large
  airy factory spaces flooded with
  bright natural light filtering
  through tall windows can host a
  team of highly skilled craftsmen
  working carefully at their tasks.

In praise of at weave

Historically the flat weave is seen

as the lesser cousin to the more

luxurious pile carpet which

is hand knotted. Pile carpet

can be produced on a vertical

loom or it can be gun tufted by

shooting wool through a base

cloth to create a surface of wool

ends that are then trimmed to a

close pile. Softer underfoot and

more expensive to make a pile

rug has always held an elevated

status. However real beauty

can be found in the flat weave.

Perfect on wooden or stone floors often double-sided and in

many ways more suited to modern interiors (and certainly

better in hotter climates) there are many positive attributes to

recommend the flat weave.

Textile artist PTOLEMY MANN travels to India to discover

its beguiling business of rug weaving with a history of

techniques that stretch back to the 16th century and

still inform the craftsmanship of the region today

The fabric

OF INDIA

112 H&A SUMMER 2017