Milas carpet

Milas carpets are carpets from southwest Turkey . It is named after the city of Milas in the province of Muğla . They have characteristic designs and color schemes based on old traditions. In ancient times the landscape around Muğla was called Karien .

The Milas carpets have evolved from the smaller forms of the prayer rug (Turkish: seccade) since the 16th century . A distinction is made between traditional (classic) and baroque carpets based on the color scheme and the pattern.

Classic Milas carpets

These usually show a rectangle and a mihrab or prayer niche on one narrow side of the rectangle . The inner border is filled with stylized plant patterns. A sub-form of this classic Milas rug is the so-called Ada-Milas. One theory of naming points to the inhabitants of what is now the Greek island (Turkish: ada) Istanköy , in Greek Kos .

Milas carpets in baroque style

Since the early 19th century, the influence of the Ottoman Baroque can also be seen in carpet art . The regular and stylized motifs of the borders are replaced by irregular and less stylized motifs such as tendrils.

Carpets with medallions

These carpets, also called Karacahisar carpets after their place of origin , are characterized by a larger, rectangular central field than the prayer carpets . This rectangle is surrounded by medallions in different shapes and with different fillings. The outer border contains the representations of abstract leaves and twigs.

Material and colors

Milas carpets have been woven from sheep's wool since the 18th century. Today, mostly natural processes and colors are still used. For example, the wool is blackened by soaking it in water for a week. The typical basic colors of Milas carpets are brown, a specific red-brown and a very dark yellow. Yellow is obtained from peach and apricot leaves, the red-brown from the heather . The brown color comes from walnut shells and the green from mint .

swell

• Ali Hosain: Orientteppich-Brevier, Braunschweig 1955
• Mila carpets