The Tradition of Tibetan Rugs
Book review by Jack Haldane (Hali, 2001)
Tibetan rugs, though appreciated by a growing number of connoisseurs, have
nevertheless been somewhat neglected by authors. This new publication thus
joins a relatively small group of books on the subject, among which the
best known include Philip Denwood's The Tibetan Carpet (1974), Hallvard
K. Kuloy's Tibetan Rugs (1982), Diana K. Myers' exhibition catalogue for
the Washington Textile Museum, Temple, Household, Horseback (1984) and
Mimi Lipton's The Tiger Rugs of Tibet (1988).
This book is from Kuloy's own publishing company
and he provides a sympathetic foreword. The authors are Tibetans, so their
experience with rugs and their access to all manner of local information
is very different from that enjoyed by outsiders. The text part of this
volume is readable and useful. The plates are beautifully printed and include
thirteen slings, ten horse/animal trappings and 23 forehead covers for
horses and mules. There is even one piece measuring 7,75m by a mere 6cm
wide which, if found further north, would have been described as a tent
band.
Few of the rugs illustrated have any provenance, nor is there anything
in the text or captions to indicate why the authors believe that most of
the pieces illustrated are from the early 20th century. Only thirteen are
described as 19th- 20th century, and a mere eight as 19th century.
The authors maintain that the weaving techniques
used for making Tibetan rugs have not changed over the years. It would
seem that in the 20th century wools were collected and processed, and the
rugs themselves woven, exactly as they were in earlier centuries. The designs,
too, reflect this same tenacity of tradition. This is beautifully confirmed
by four rugs on pp.149 and 150 which were woven in the late 1990s and are
now to be found in the Gangchen Folk Arts Collection.
Perfection not being a state to be found this side of the great divide,
one does find errors and omissions. It is curious that the publishers did
not include a much fuller bibliography, nor the details of the several
excellent catalogues of dealers' exhibitions of Tibetan rugs. Much the
same can be said of the large map, which shows south Central Asia and a
good part of northern India, but only a total of 32 places, of which just
thirteen are in Tibet.
[Read a review from The Centre of Tibetan Studies]
[Read a review from The Journal of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers]
[More Orchid Press Reviews]
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