Quarterly Scientific-Research Goljaam

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Regardless of its architectural features, garden is one of the key concepts in Persian art history from the ancient times to the Islamic period with a significant role in different arts, especially in architecture, from conceptual, formal and also contents-based points of view.

The main aim of this research is a comprehensive study of garden concept and its significant role in Safavid art and culture.

This paper is to question the status of garden in the role of epistemology and thought concept in forming many of movements and artworks of Safavid period, esp. in the art of carpet weaving.  

This Historic, descriptive and analytic research with its library-based data collection method practices Michael Foucault’s discourse theory and ideas of Laclau and Mouffé to analyze the gathered information.

Results show that regarding its conceptual, determinant and regulative characteristics, the concept of garden is an epistemological discourse in forming the configuration, concept and context of Safavid art. Accordingly, garden is a dominant discourse in art and rugs of Safavid period.

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Iranian hand-woven carpet is a national art rooted in the ancient civilization, culture and history of Iran. In history, carpet designs have been transformed, due to changes in society and at times subjects, designs, shapes and combinations are brought in or taken out. For example, during Qajar Era, new social transformations resulted in the invention of new motifs in rugs in contrast to former abstract motifs; with simulated or imagined images of kings.

 This paper studies pictorial rugs of Qajar period with a sociological approach and with Laclau and Mouffe discourse analysis beside the semantic structure of Syntagmatic and Paradigmatic axes of Ferdinand de Saussure. It aims at finding the answer for the question of what discourse signifiers were affecting those rugs and the reason behind the popularity of the images of mythical ancient Iranian kings at that era.

Descriptive-analytic approach is used in this study and library documents were applied as data source. Ten samples of pictorial rugs, with Iranian kings as their subject, were selected randomly as the sample. The findings of this study reveal that since a willingness to find an Iranian identity right against other nations was to emerge at that era, people who travelled to Europe tended to find the reason behind Iran’s underdevelopment. As a result, they introduced mythical kings and the pre-Islamic era as the ideal kings and the golden age, which was being reflected in the rugs of that period. The structure of motifs’ companionship seem to be replaced by images of kings in order to emphasize the hegemony of their divinely spiritual legitimacy and political power in the world.

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Iranian artists and craftsmen have been interested in decorations for a long time. Geometric, animal and plant motifs and sometimes a line in various combinations adorned all or part of their handmade works. The art of carpet weaving hasn't been excluded. Carpet designers have created beautiful and sometimes unique designs by the influence of religion, politics, culture and other common arts during the course of history and the master weavers have also recorded it.

One of the most important applied designs in carpet-weaving art which became universal by the arrival of the Islam is the design of prayer rugs, the carpets with small dimensions that were designed and woven to perform the most important religious practices; saying prayers. Probably, performing congregational religious ceremonies including Congregational Prayers, Friday or Eid (Islamic Feast) prayers were enough to create a unique design in the art of carpet-weaving in Islamic Iran with the title of a Niche Prayer Rug (saff).

In these kinds of carpets, a row of altar arches is woven on the length or width of the carpet to determine the position of a single person who says prayers. This attractive design that can be a symbol of unity of the Islamic nations, has been gradually adapted by Muslims of other Islamic countries such as Turkey, India and Eastern Turkestan. Considering the culture and common decorative motifs of that area, the native weavers produced different and sometimes beautiful carpets that are rooted in original Iranian art.

This descriptive-analytic investigation is to study the history of the Niche Prayer Rug (saff) design in Iranian carpet-weaving art. Regarding the library based state of the research, it’s tried to introduce the reason of weaving these kinds of carpets and also the areas that produced them.

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Emigrating Jews to Iran and other countries, known for handmade rugs craft, caused penetrating their beliefs into those countries’ traditional artifacts and also developing Jewish rugs. According to ostensible characteristics, Jewish rugs are ones which contain Judaic signs or Jewish Merchants’ signatures. Since 1850 Jewish rugs have been produced in main cities of Iran, e.g. Kashan, Tabriz and Kerman. In fact, they were the result of combination of Judaic patterns and the rich Iranian rug craft. Occupying Palestine and emigrating Jews from all over the word, their experience of rug art and also Alliance Israelite schools helped Jews to prepare a fabricated cultural identity through producing new artifacts for their new society. Analyzing and Comparing five more abundant Jewish rugs of Iran and Occupied Palestine, semiotically and considering historical background, showed that the difference between motivations and territorial background has made their products various. Iranian cases have been faithful to the rug tradition and its aesthetic, considering workmanship and financial goals, but the cases of Occupied Palestine, Politic aims behind religious patterns and signs, have been prior than other values.

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Abstract
After the arrival of Islam and the prohibition of the use of animals and human figures, the Islamic artists invented new and different manners to decorate various art forms; one of this way was applying different calligraphy styles in their pieces. The carpet was one those which got influenced by calligraphy
This investigation will study the importance of writing and calligraphy; and the factors, which influence on the quality and execution of rules and geometry of writing in carpet through analyzing the collected samples and a descriptive-analytical manner. It is well known that the carpet, in comparison with the other branches of art, has a limitation in execution and techniques especially in design. This investigation has analyzed the samples up to Qajar period while considering the technical limitations as the main obstacle for the lack of executing the letters in calligraphy although with utmost beauty and maturity, and also taking into consideration that the use of writing as a subsidiary factor, leads to less attention to its execution. Eventually, it is concluded that the technical limitation, in some cases human mistakes, neglect and imprecision were factors, which had influence on execution of the carpet. 
Between different types of writing, Nastaliq was the only script, which has received most infliction in both execution form and technical points.
 

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The original handmade carpet of Sistan has always played an important role in the livelihoods and the economy of the people. However, the position of this valuable art-craft has been impressed by some problems in Iran handmade carpet and especially to the particular native dilemma of the area. As the production of Sistan's carpets has been greatly reduced today, continuing this process can in the long run lead to the deterioration of Sistan's carpet and cause irreparable damage to the employment and livelihoods of the people of this area. Therefore, it is necessary to recognize and analyze the indexes affecting the stagnation of Sistan carpet and planning to eliminate them in order to improve the final product and job creation in the region. This issue is considered as the main goal of the current research.
The research methodology is combined and Extractive. First, using semi-structured interviews, the causes of the recession of handmade rug in Sistan were analyzed from the viewpoint of experts in this field and nineteen key factors were identified. Then, a new questionnaire was designed using these factors within the Likert scale framework. The views of the local people in this area regarding the causes of the stagnation of Sistan's handmade carpet were examined. In this step, a "T test" was used for analyzing questionnaire data. The results show that the drought and destruction of livestock, lifestyle changes and livelihoods, as well as the low profitability of the final product, The most important causes of the stagnation of Sistan's original handmade carpet are the most important.
 

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A subjective rug is weaved in a border and distant village named Aqdash, a subsidiary district of Kalat-e-Naderi County in Khorasan-e-Razavi Province and it is called “Pelas” or “Turkish Pelas” by the villagers of the region. The knitting of Pelas by the women of the village, even with the existence of 170 active knitting devices in a village accommodating 167 households, is illustrative of the common and live culture of the village. The global fame of the manually-woven Iranian carpets and the various knitting styles in the variegated regions make it necessary to do research regarding the identification of the design and image and introducing of techniques of knitting such manually woven carpets. Subjective images have always been directly associated with the original culture and their gradual destruction are enumerated amongst the today’s harms of rug production for which reason the collecting and registering of these images are of great importance. The question raised in the present study is that what are the contents of the images knitted in the Aqdash rugs and what meanings do they convey in the culture of the village? The primary goal of the present study is finding the relationship between the image concepts of these rugs and the customary culture of Aqdash village. According to the change in the lifestyle and the importance of ecology during the recent years, the study of the sub-cultures and the recognition of the different ecologies within the cultural ground of the region, popularization of Aqdash rug and, subsequently, booming of the economy and earning of income for the residents therein are amongst the other goals of the present research paper. The present study has been conducted based on a descriptive-analytical method. Besides through preliminary library researches, the information and data presented in the present study have been collected based interviews, observation and the author’s familiarity with the village culture. The study results indicated that the pictures of such natural elements as the village’s habitat and animals have been knitted in the images hence the rugs are found directly associated with the life of the people in Aqdash village. Climatic and geographical conditions of the region and the formation of a sub-culture in the past are amongst the environmental factors instigating the continuation of rug-weaving in Aqdash.

 

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IIn the country of Turkey, in the city of Hereke, at the end of the 19th century, rugs known as Mihrabi became popular, which were inspired by the rugs of the Safavid era and kept in the Topkapi Palace Museum. In these rugs, which are reproduced in royal workshops on a large scale, some changes have been made in the verbal text and incorporated visual elements. Among the rugs that seem to have had a great impact on the rugs of this period in terms of appearance, there is a rug from the Safavid era that is kept in the Topkapi Palace Museum. This rug has been reproduced in large numbers in Herke with slight changes in the verbal text and its visual elements. An example of this reproduction is the rug designed by "Zare". In the verbal text of the "Zare" rug, Persian words have a special place; also, the existing rug has a signature. Meanwhile the verbal text of the Safavid rug is in Arabic and has no signature. Since these rugs were woven in two different cultures and times, the question is: What role did the dominant discourse in the society play in the changes made in the verbal texts and visual signs in the reproduction of the rug kept in Topkapi Palace Museum? In order to achieve a suitable answer using the analytical-comparative method, the mentioned rugs were compared with each other in both periods and the dominant discourse was examined. According to the comparison, it was concluded that the rug of the Safavid era expressed the mystical thought of that period. Meanwhile, in its reproduction by "Zare "and its minor changes, attention has been paid more to the rug not as a handwoven product for conduct and worship, but as a product to express humanist and nationalistic ideas and to represent the golden age of the Ottoman Empire.
 

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Mahdishahr (Sangsar) located in Semnan Province is the location of residence of Sangsari tribes, which are among the original Iranian tribes. The carpet weaving in the Sangsar area is very old due to the nomadic life, but the urban carpet weaving is probably about one hundred-years-old. Sangsar Rug designs have been influenced by the virtu, tastes, social and climatic circumstances of the inhabitants of the region over the past years, and indigenous and cultural concepts have played a substantial role in the evolution and diversity of the design. Despite having native raw materials and self-painted wools, one of the features of Sangsar Rug is the use of the design and pattern of carpets in reputable areas of carpet weaving that are seen in fewer clans or similar tribes. Sangsari weavers wove various designs such as four-season, lachak (a typical scarf), and bergamot, subsoil, bush, carpet tableau, etc. based on the plan or by modelling (taking patterns) of urban carpets back (tail) of other areas. One of the most diverse designs, Introducing the characteristics and identification of the types of woven altar carpets, available and available in the region in the last one hundred years.which is woven in different types and dimensions in this area, is the mehrab design.

The main question of the research is how the mehrab design is woven in Sangsar region and which geographical areas do the origin of the designs woven in Sangsar mehrab carpets go back to? This research has been carried out in a descriptive-analytical way and in the form of a field and document study, and the purpose of its implementation, in addition to getting to know the method of carpet weaving in the Sangsar region, is to introduce the characteristics and identify the types of woven altar carpets that are available and available in the region. It is the last hundred years.
The findings of the research show that local weavers have been able to design and implement a variety of altar designs such as vase-pillar altar, tree-pillar, tree-animal, vase-cedar, vase-bergamot and two-sided altar-vase with local features according to order or by copying the carpets from the areas such as Qom, Isfahan and Kashan, Hamedan, Ravar Kerman and modeling Sangsar ornaments.
 

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Abstract
Pictorial carpets in the Qajar era are of the important sources that have shown their capacity to reflect various aspects of modernity, including the concept of nationalism, in the Pahlavi era also reflects other aspects of this concept. This paper explores the various aspects of the concept of nationalism in the pictorial carpets of the Pahlavi period. The main question is what are the characteristics and implications of the nationalist aspects reflected on the pictorial carpets of this period? The research method is qualitative and of historical-comparative. As a result, the concept of nationalism in the body of studies is influenced by the three complex aspects of geography, archeology and remedial issues, the written aspect is influenced by poems and slogans, and the identity background influenced by celebrities of science and literature that the first two cases are directly related to the concept of king, monarchy and sometimes religion, and its royal aspect is highlighted, and in the latter case, this link is more patriotic. elements are sometimes mixed together and sometimes presented independently. On second thoughts, it is clear that some of the combinational aspects of these elements in the carpets promote a kind of monarchical nationalism that can be called royal nationalism. On the other hand, the findings indicate the impact of new educational and cultural institutions in the study; It also represents the use of the lion and sun emblem as a nationalist symbol that has identity, governmental and popular aspects in pictorial carpets. An honor that can be given global effects by writing the inscription introducing the memorial in English language. Other findings of this paper is the existence of a relationship between the pattern and inscriptions of carpets with nationalistic concepts, Synchronized with the changes had occurred in the Pahlavi era and with the developments of the Qajar era are diachrony. it can be said that the historical recognition of nationalism in the pictorial carpet depends on understanding the intertwined relationship that existed between the newly established institutions of the Pahlavi era and its social contexts
 

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Afghanistan war rugs are of distinct features among the contemporary folk arts and that’s why they are considered very distinguished. Establishing a dialogue with the world about war as a catastrophe is regarded as the most significant feature of such works. Playing a major role in transferring mental ideas of artists, the extant space and rhythms in these hand-woven artifacts constantly fluctuate between two main concepts of war and life, or the imposed and the desired. The present research aims at demonstrating the representation of space and rhythm in Afghanistan war rugs on the basis of Henri Lefebvre’s theory. Accordingly, the main questions of the research would be as follows: How life and war spaces are represented in the Afghanistan war rugs? How the related rhythms of such phenomena have been demonstrated? Having been carried out in analytical-descriptive methodology and on library studies, the results of the essay show that representing the space in Afghanistan war rugs are actually considered an attempt to express self-assertion in power relations. The most important way to fulfill this purpose was offering contrast in the act of representation. While the military elements constitute the dominant rhythm in the rugs, their contrast with other motifs such as flowers, trees and plants, which are indicative of hesitation, tranquility and change in the rhythm, confronts the domination of war.
 

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A hand-woven rug has a language and inherits the cultural, religious, and social messages and its weaver feelings. To know the messages that a rug can offer from the past to the present needs to read the symbolic language of the designs and motifs. However, in most cases, information about the meanings of a rug as an artwork is not available; hence, a logical and systematic method should be used to get past the image and reach the real concept. This research tries to reveal the hidden messages behind the motifs of a Hadji-Djalili rug with a Mihrab design, which has two prominent features:  (1) the tree of life in the middle of the rug is a hybrid type, and (2) the weaver has dyed it with special elegance in the way of a real highlight (or Abrash). These are rarely seen in other altar rugs. Based on this, the study follows to find answers to these questions: What are the symbolic concepts that are hidden behind the design, pattern, and color of the mentioned rug? And how can they be achieved? What is the final meaning of the symbolic language of these motifs? Thus, the aim of this research is to use Panofsky's iconology method to find the layers of meaning through the three stages of "pre-iconography description, iconography analysis, and iconology interpretation". This research is written with the descriptive-analytical method and uses library information and written documents. The results of the iconography analysis, which is formed by connecting the chain of meanings hidden behind the motifs, confirmed the "votive or endowment" of the mentioned rug. On the other hand, the interpretation of iconology shows that the weaver of this rug knowingly or unknowingly created an artwork, which emphasizes the need for a man (or a worshiper) to achieve spiritual evolution through the entrance to the existence circle and spiritual ascension.

 

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In this research, the aesthetic features of Tabriz altar carpets have been introduced and studied. This research tries to answer the basic question that what are the aesthetic features of altar rugs and especially Tabriz altar rugs according to the samples in the Iranian Carpet Museum? Deals with the aesthetic principles and foundations of altar rugs and introduces them.
The results indicate that the aesthetic structure of altar rugs, despite the aesthetic elements and the combination of factors such as design, role and color, have been expressive of symbolic and symbolic concepts. According to the motifs used in this type of carpets such as altar, chandelier, column, vase, etc., the common concept in the Iranian carpet can be achieved, which ultimately ends in the eternal paradise and a place to display the essence of transcendence. In these carpets, despite adhering to the traditional elements of Iranian carpets and the proper use of patterns according to their concepts, diversity and innovation in design and color are also evident. In the studied samples, the use of abstract motifs such as Islamic rotations and khatai flowers in different parts of the carpet such as text and margins and their appropriate combination with symbolic motifs such as columnar altar, lamp, vase, etc. are important. This research is a historical research in terms of time and descriptive-analytical in terms of purpose. The method of collecting information is library and documentary. In this research, 8 samples of Tabriz altar carpet images of Iran Carpet Museum have been studied in a descriptive-analytical manner.