7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good introduction, with many excellent photographs, January 9, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Oriental Carpets: From the Tents, Cottages and Workshops of Asia (Mass Market Paperback)
This is an excellent book to learn about oriental carpets, and it provides a good general reference for both first time and experienced buyers. It is well written and well-organized. I have the larger format hard copy, which shows off the 180(!) excellent photos of a large variety of both new and old carpets, and the people who make them. The quality of the photos are the best I have found among the many carpet books I've read and looked through. At the back are two informative 2-page maps showing the main carpet-making areas of Turkey, the Middle East, China & Mongolia. Note that this book is not a complete lexicon of carpets, so it is less useful for someone who wants to look up a particular carpet name, spelling, or style. Highly recommended, especially the hard copy published in 1988, if you can find it.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best introductory rug book I've seen, December 24, 2005
This review is from: Oriental Carpets: From the Tents, Cottages and Workshops of Asia (Mass Market Paperback)
_____________________________________________
I like rug books -- my wife and I went to a rug show
and came home with almost $600 (!!) worth -- in fact, I sprained my
back getting them out to the car. This book was, without question,
the best deal of the bunch -- you might be surprised how small a
stack $600 worth of books can be (OK, one of them was $250, our
"big" Xmas gift to each other, & the most expensive book we've
ever bought.)
You'll recognize this book in the store by the wonderful cover
photo of two cheerful Turkoman girls knotting a carpet. This is
one of the strengths of the book -- lots of photos of rug weavers at
work, and how they live, both modern and historic. The second
strength -- lots and lots of gorgeous color photos of rugs! They're
not quite as good as the $250 book, but pretty darned close. Third,
Mr Thompson writes in a clear, wry, direct fashion that's a joy to
read -- a refreshing contrast to the garbled, turgid and/or purple
prose you may have seen in other rug/art books. Here's a sample
from the appendix on buying advice, "Closing-down Sales":
"This new method of selling carpets... is based on the very simple
principle that avarice, cupidity and greed are unfailing sources of
positive motivations in human beings..."
If you have any interest in Oriental rugs, you *need* this book. If
you don't think you're interested, do yourself a favor & check it
out from the library. Would that more art books were like this....
review copyright 1998 by Peter D. Tillman
Pete Tillman, a long-time textile collector, once wrote (and sold!) a
science-fiction story based on Oriental rugs.
Note: this is a repost of the review just below -- I've lost the account name
I had then, and so can't revise or delete it. Sigh
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5.0 out of 5 stars
A Winner, February 14, 2010
This review is from: Oriental Carpets: From the Tents, Cottages and Workshops of Asia (Mass Market Paperback)
This is an older book, but is one of the most informative and delightful books on the world of Oriental Rugs. Here's why:
- Process not just Product: Thompson provides surprisingly ample coverage on where the rugs come from, how they are made, and the idiosyncracies of local culture
- Excellent photos: you could certainly buy some big coffee-table book with more deluxe images of rugs, but at 176 pp, there are some stunning rugs here photographed so that the textures and colors in the rugs really shine
- History: again, for a book of this length, there is an ample amount of historical perspective offered
176 pp, large format trade paperbacks, color illustrations throughout.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Western Interest in the Eastern Carpet
Making a Carpet
Tribal and Domestic Weavings
The Cottage Industry
Workshop or Town Carpets
Court Carpets
Symbolism
Notes for Buyers and Sellers
Glossary
Notes
Maps
Index
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