The Jack Daulton Collection
Antique & Ethnographic Art

Antique Persian

Qalamkar Textile

 

Persian qalamkar (block-printed and hand-painted) textile

 

pigment on cotton

 

30 x 47 ½ in.

 

Esfahan, Iran

 

18th–19th century, Qajar Period

 

provenance:  collected in Iran by Jack Daulton

 

Inv. no. 1


Qalamkar (sometimes kalimkari or kalamkari), literally “pen-workmanship,” are block-printed and hand-painted cotton textiles that are used for wall-hangings, bed-coverings, table-coverings, and other functions.  The city of Esfahan is, and has been for centuries, the center of production of such textiles in Iran (Persia).

 

This example is in exceptional condition.