HALI NEWSLETTER No. 367

[View this email in your browser]( Sotheby’s Arts of the Islamic World and India including Fine Rugs and Carpets sale will take place in London on 26 October 2022 and showcases an array of rare works of art and textiles. The sale features an exceptionally fine silk and metal-thread embroidered and quilted Gujarat floor spread with delicately drawn floral sprays (lot 111, above). The floor spread was most likely commissioned by George Matcham, an East India Company officer resident in Baroche, Gujarat from 1771-85, and has remained with the same family ever since. A ‘plain tradition’ velvet of strikingly graphic, minimalist design displays the mastery of Ottoman craftsmanship (lot 127), and an 18th-century Azerbaijan embroidery with an electric colour palette and an unusual animal lattice demonstrates the rich traditions descended from Safavid Persia (lot 153). The sale further encompasses a selection of weavings from across the Middle East, India and Anatolia, featuring a selection of carpets and textiles from the collection of Mansour Heskia, renowned for his excellent eye and generosity with his knowledge. The collection is presented alongside luxurious weavings of Persia including two Kashan Mohtasham carpets (lots 164 and 165), one with an unusual animal design, a 17th-century ‘Lotto’ rug (lot 156), and a near pair of Syrian silk and metal-thread embroidered flatwoven panels descended from the family of Italian Orientalist painter Giulio Rosati (lot 155). [Click here to view the sale.]( For further information, please contact Frankie Keyworth: E: Frankie.Keyworth@sothebys.com [News] An official ceremony was held in Rome, on 21 July 2022, to mark the discovery of two stolen tapestries, that were finally returned to Gallery Moshe Tabibnia more than twenty years after their theft from the Milanese gallery. The credit goes to the officers of the Comando Carabinieri per la Tutela del Patrimonio Culturale, well known for their excellent work in retrieving stolen artworks, as well as FBI agents and officers at the American Embassy in Rome. The two 16th-century tapestries, woven in Flanders, depict The Return of the Ark of the Covenant and an Allegoric Scene with Coat of Arms (above); MT166159 and MT195918, Gallery Moshe Tabibnia, Milan. After they were stolen in 1995, the tapestries were illegally exported to the US along with with two other objects of art: a Roman mosaic depicting the head of the Medusa and a pair of gold Roman coins dating to 60-61 . They were eventually tracked down, thanks to detective work surveying the online art market carried out on a regular basis by the Sezione Elaborazione Dati of the Comando TPC. The aim of this activity is to locate six-million illegally-acquired objects of art of cultural interest. Both of the tapestries were found in Florida; one in a luxury villa and the other in a Jacksonville auction house. [Read more stories like this in HALI 213.]( Bonhams Skinner is proud to host the second round of rug and textile auctions from the Jim Dixon collection. These sales provide a rare opportunity for lovers of woven art to round out their collections with examples of the rarest material as well as a opportunities for novices to safely bid on sophisticated and beautiful material vetted by one of the most important carpet collectors in the world. Whether you’re looking for a 17th-century Ottoman Cairene carpet, fragments from Ming-era palace rugs, unusual Caucasian or Anatolian rugs, or just something interesting for your floor, the upcoming pair of Jim Dixon auctions have something for everyone. The Rugs & Textiles online auction will run from 10–20 October 2022, and the Woven Gardens live auction will be hosted in our Marlborough, MA gallery on 19 October 2022. Preview the auctions in Marlborough 17–20 October 2022 [by appointment]( or click [here]( to view them online. [View]( Gardens]( [View Rugs and Textiles.]( We are delighted to announce that two books, published by Hali Publications Ltd., are back in stock! Arms & Armour of India, Nepal & Sri Lanka: Types, Decoration and Symbolism by Ravinder Reddy and Tibetan Dress in Amdo and Kham by Gina Corrigan, are both available to purchase from shop.hali.com. We also have a number of recent releases such as From Myth to Art: Anatolian Kilims by Ali Riza Tuna and Anatolian Tribal Rugs 1050-1750: The Orient Stars Collectionby Michael Franses available online at the HALI Bookshop. [Visit the HALI Bookshop.]( We are in the process of revising our privacy policy. If you would like to unsubscribe click [here](. [Follow Us] [Facebook]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Instagram]( [Been forwarded this email and want to receive it regularly? Subscribe to this newsletter]( Copyright © 2022 Hali Publications Ltd, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in at our website, or are a HALI customer. The attributions and valuations expressed by gallerists and auctioneers do not necessarily reflect the opinion of Hali Publications. Our mailing address is: Hali Publications Ltd 6 Sylvester PathLondon, England E8 1EN United Kingdom [Add us to your address book]( [unsubscribe from this list]( [update subscription preferences](