Vintage Black Tribal Felt
A rare type with the colours reversed (black for the background, ivory for the pattern). Felts are among the first woolen structures made by mankind, some of the earliest we know were found in the ‘kurgans’ of Central Asia, decorated by a variety of zoomorphic motifs typical of Siberian cultures. Following the Turkic invasions, the art of the felt reached the Anatolian region, where it was developed by certain tribal groups. Examples such as this one were used in the ‘yurts’ of the nomadic tribes located around Konya, in central Anatolia. Made of undyed wool, these felts were used to decorate the inner wall or the roof of the tent and are thus found in a wide variety of formats. The archaic quality of the design however could make us forget the fact that we are looking at an utilitarian object, taking us once again in the realm of contemporary abstract art.