Alcaraz carpet

Alcaraz carpet, floor covering handwoven in 15th- and 16th-century Spain at Alcaraz in Murcia. These carpets use the Spanish knot on one warp. A number of 15th-century examples imitate contemporary Turkish types but differ in border details and colouring. There are several different patterns with “wheels” in rectangular compartments. Other carpets imitate a wide range of brocade and velvet patterns. A remarkable number of these carpets survive, either complete or as fragments. The colouring is...