This item has been added to the Database within the Explore Islamic Art Collections project. Information is available in: English, German, Arabic.

Name of Object:

Vienna hunting carpet

Location:

Vienna, Austria

Holding Museum:

MAK – Museum of Applied Arts

About MAK – Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna

Date of Object:

First half of the 16th century

Museum Inventory Number:

T 8336

Material(s) / Technique(s):

Silk warp and weft; knotted; silk asymmetrical knot. Silver thread brocade; part gilded, around silk core

Dimensions:

H: 687cm, W: 331cm; knot density 14,330/dm2

Period / Dynasty:

Safavid

Provenance:

Central Iran, probably Kashan

Description:

Due to its fineness, motifs, and size, the famous silk Vienna hunting carpet ranks among the world’s most exceptional carpets having been repeatedly publicised since the 19th century. Originating from the court of Shah Tahmasp I (r. 1524–76), the carpet’s design supposedly lay in the hands of the court painters working for the art-minded ruler. Comparable hunting scenes are found in miniature paintings, but also on fabrics of Safavid production. The middle of the balanced pattern forms a medallion with dragons and phoenixes – symbols of power brought over from China, found in the Iranian formal repertoire since the Ilkhanid period. The corners are marked by quarters of the main medallion. Safavid horsemen and prey in the surrounding fields form into one of the famous imperial hunts. Peris (angel-like beings) are depicted in front of dainty tendrils in the surrounding borders. How the Vienna hunting carpet entered into the possession of the Austrian Imperial Court is still not exactly ascertainable. Its extraordinary quality suggests it was a diplomatic gift.

How Object was obtained:

Assumption

Link to catalogue/digitisation in Holding Institution’s database:

https://sammlung.mak.at/sammlung_online?id=collect-98330

Selected bibliography:

Noever, Peter (ed), Global Lab. Kunst als Botschaft. Asien und Europa 1500 - 1700. Ausstellung Museum für angewandte Kunst Wien, 03. Juni bis 27. September 2009, Ostfildern: Hatje Cantz, 2009: cat. nr. 157 (97).
Völker, Angela, Die orientalischen Knüpfteppiche das MAK, Vienna: Böhlau, 2001: 198–203.

Citation of this web page:

Martina Dax "Vienna hunting carpet" in Explore Islamic Art Collections. Museum With No Frontiers, 2026.
https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;EPM;at;Mus21;46;en

Prepared by: Martina Dax
Copyedited by: Mandi GomezMandi Gomez

Amanda Gomez is a freelance copy-editor and proofreader working in London. She studied Art History and Literature at Essex University (1986–89) and received her MA (Area Studies Africa: Art, Literature, African Thought) from SOAS in 1990. She worked as an editorial assistant for the independent publisher Bellew Publishing (1991–94) and studied at Bookhouse and the London College of Printing on day release. She was publications officer at the Museum of London until 2000 and then took a role at Art Books International, where she worked on projects for independent publishers and arts institutions that included MWNF’s English-language editions of the books series Islamic Art in the Mediterranean. She was part of the editorial team for further MWNF iterations: Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean Virtual Museum and the illustrated volume Discover Islamic Art in the Mediterranean.

True to its ethos of connecting people through the arts, MWNF has provided Amanda with valuable opportunities for discovery and learning, increased her editorial experience, and connected her with publishers and institutions all over the world. More recently, the projects she has worked on include MWNF’s Sharing History Virtual Museum and Exhibition series, Vitra Design Museum’s Victor Papanek and Objects of Desire, and Haus der Kulturen der Welt’s online publication 2 or 3 Tigers and its volume Race, Nation, Class.

MWNF Working Number: AT1 46