  
  About the Artwork
  
  
  In the sixteenth century, Ottoman imperial workshops at Istanbul and Bursa produced some of the most sumptuous fabrics ever created. These prized textiles were distributed as gifts and exhibited at ceremonies.
 
This enormous floor covering was probably woven at Bursa, an international center for the silk trade. Eight-petaled rosettes enclosing carnations and rosebuds alternate with crosses of serrated leaves to form an overall pattern. Glittering silver-wrapped yellow silk thread and ivory satin contrast with red and blue green velvet. The pile of one half of the floor covering lies in one direction while the other half lies in the opposite, creating a magical shimmer.
  
  
  Title
  Summer Floor Covering (nihale)
  
  
  Artwork Date
  between 1650 and 1700
  
  Artist
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  Life Dates
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  Nationality
  
  
  
  Please note:
  Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events.
  Some definitions include:
  Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation.
  
  
  
  Turkish
  
  
  
  Culture
  
  
  
  Please note:
  Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group.
  
  
  
  
  ----------
  
  
  Medium
  Cut and voided velvet; silk with metal threads (silver wrapped silk core); compound satin and velvet
  
  
  Dimensions
  Overall: 105 1/2 inches &Atilde;&#151; 16 feet 1 inches (268 cm &Atilde;&#151; 4 m 90.2 cm)
  
  
  Classification
  Rugs
  
  
  Department
  Islamic Art
  
  
  Credit
  Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Eugene H. Welker
  
  
  
  Accession Number
  
  
  
  This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection.
  Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum&acirc;&#128;&#153;s holdings.
  For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems&acirc;&#128;&#148;no longer assigned&acirc;&#128;&#148;that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups.
  
  
  
  48.137
  
  
  Copyright
  Public Domain
  
  
  
