A sixteenth-century Mamluk rug supplied the pattern, and it is the one piece of the East in a collection that otherwise looks west. It has been given to a lampas, where a supplementary weft rides above the ground weave, so the figure keeps a surface of its own rather than sinking into the cloth.
The finished piece is calendered, pressed under heat until the silk lies flat and reflects, and the pattern moves between matt and shine as you cross the room. Viscose and silk with acetate, a 39 cm vertical repeat, five colourways. At 380 g it is a decorating weight rather than an upholstery one, and Rubelli publish no abrasion figure for it. Curtains, blinds and cushions. 135 cm wide, made in Italy.
