w - MORRIS & CO. A GOOD EARLY 'REDCAR' HAND KNOTTED HAMMERSMITH CARPET, DESIGNED BY WILLIAM

w - MORRIS & CO. A GOOD EARLY 'REDCAR' HAND KNOTTED HAMMERSMITH CARPET, DESIGNED BY WILLIAM MORRIS AND PROBABLY WOVEN AT MERTON ABBEY

designed circa 1881-85, executed circa 1890

of delicate design with scrolling pale blue/green stems, formalised leaves and flowers, further pastel shades including green, beige and russet on cream/beige ground with scrolling stylised foliate border

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES

For an illustration of Morris's original watercolour design for the Redcar carpet see: Linda Parry, William Morris Textiles, London, 1983, p.95.
CATALOGUE NOTE

This is one of the few Morris & Co. carpets the design of which is the exclusive work of William Morris himself before his collaboration with John Henry Dearle.

The carpet takes its name from the Philip Webb house at Redcar built for the Bell family for whom the original Recar carpet was designed and made. This carpet is now in the Lang museum at Newcastle. An almost identical carpet is in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum and was acquired directly from Morris & Co. in 1919.