Garden of Heaven
A unique Persian carpet in the Burrell Collection

Saturday 27 March – Sunday 11 April 2010

A rare opportunity to view Sir William Burrell’s prized 17th century Persian “Wagner” Garden Carpet, believed to be the second most important Iranian carpet in the UK next to the Ardabil Carpet at the V&A Museum.  The carpet will be displayed at The Burrell Collection in Glasgow over Easter and Nowruz holidays and will be accompanied by a free programme of public events. Little-Persia will have rugs on sale at the Burrell Museum shop and the story telling sessions will also benefit from a Persian Tabriz rug which children will be able to sit on while listening to stories of times gone by.

Due to its large size and condition, measuring approximately 5.5m x 4.3m, this Safavid carpet has only been displayed twice in the last 30 years.  Believed to have been made in Kerman, or possibly Isphahan, it has a woollen pile, cotton warps, and wool and cotton wefts. 

Named after a previous German owner (Wagner), the carpet’s unique and beautiful design is of a four quartered garden divided by water channels that form the letter H, with a water basin in the centre of the short horizontal channel.  The garden is filled with Cypresses, flowering trees and shrubs, and populated with an array of birds, butterflies, animals, and several types of fish and duck.  Lions, leopards, gazelles, peacocks, storks and pigeons roam the garden too.  The symmetrical layout and bordered water channels are not only reminiscent of Safavid royal gardens in Isphahan, but also resemble descriptions of Gardens of Paradise in the Qur’an.

The Wagner Garden Carpet is considered to be one of the three earliest surviving Persian garden carpets in the world, the other two being at the Jaipur Museum and the Museum of Industrial Art in Vienna.  However, the design of this particular carpet is unique, and no other examples resembling it or using part of its base-pattern have yet been identified. 

To launch the display there will be a one day symposium of talks on Saturday 27 March, exploring the theme of Paradise gardens in Islamic Art and culture, and the horticultural traditions of Iran.  The guest speakers include the celebrated gardener and garden historian Penelope Hobhouse and the leading Islamic Art scholar Professor Robert Hillenbrand.  See further details below.

The free public programme includes a variety of events for adults and for families.  Though all the events are free, some of the activities require booking in advance:

Saturday 27 March – Sunday 11 April
The Garden of Heaven Display
Daily, in the temporary exhibitions gallery.

Saturday 27 March – Sunday 11 April
Daily Introduction Talks to Garden of Heaven Display
Brief talks delivered throughout the day by the Burrell Guides.

Saturday 27 March, 11.00am – 4.30pm
The Garden of Heaven Symposium
Free but booking advised (contact Tel. No.: 0141 287 2563).
In association with the Iran Heritage Foundation and the Iranian-Scottish Association.
Through six lectures, this symposium explores the historical, cultural and artistic context of the Wagner Garden Carpet, including the concept of Paradise in Iranian heritage; the Safavid Dynasty and its carpet industry; a historical overview of the horticultural practices and traditions of Iran; Iranian gardens today; the celebrations of the Spring Equinox and Nowruz – the Persian New Year – and gardens in the poetry and song of Iran. The speakers are Prof. Robert Hillenbrand, University of Edinburgh; Jennifer Scarce, Honorary Lecturer, University of Dundee; Penelope Hobhouse, gardener and garden historian; Faryar Javaherian, architect, Tehran, Iran; Narguess Farzad, Senior Fellow in Persian, School of Oriental and African Studies, London; and Dr Moya Carey, the Iran Heritage Foundation Curator for the Iranian Collections at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.

Saturday 27 March, 2.00pm
Burrell for Families programme: Carpet Creations
Booking required.
Work together as a family to make a textile piece with patterns drawn from the Wagner Garden Carpet. The workshop lasts about 90 minutes, and is suitable for families with children aged 5–12. Please phone 0141 287 2564 or email BurrellL&A@csglasgow.org to book in advance as places are limited.

Sunday 28 March, 2.30pm
Lecture and film screening: Painting with Persian Poetry
The Burrell Lecture Theatre.
In this illustrated lecture, Jila Peacock, an Iranian-born painter and printmaker, explores the art of zoomorphic calligraphy – a distinct genre of Arabic and Farsi script – and her experimentation with it. She also introduces the screening of ‘Tongue of the Hidden’, a short animated film of her calligraphy, visualizing and interpreting two medieval Persian love poems by Hafiz of Shiraz.

Sunday 28 March, 2.30 – 4.30pm
Garden of Heaven Story Telling for Families
(Also on 4 and 11 April).
In association with the Village Story Telling Centre.
Sit on beautiful Persian carpets and listen as storytellers tell you about the legends and fairytales of Ancient Persia – today’s Iran. Each Sunday session will have a different storyteller and set of stories.

Monday 29 March – Sunday 11 April
Animation screening: The Tongue of the Hidden
Throughout the day in the Burrell Lecture Theatre.
The ‘Tongue of the Hidden’ is a short animation of two poems by the celebrated medieval Iranian love poet and Sufi mystic Hafiz of Shiraz (AD 1315–90). The six-minute film is made from Persian calligraphy scripted by the Iranian-born artist Jila Peacock, directed by Bafta award winner David Alexander Anderson and produced by Animate projects Ltd in 2007.

Wednesday 31 March, 11am – 12noon
Wee Wednesdays (for families)
On this day parents and toddlers can drop in and discover the magic of this Persian Garden in an exciting multi-sensory workshop.

Wednesday 31 March, 12.30pm
Curators’ Favourites lunchtime talk:  The Wagner Garden Carpet, a Persian carpet from 17th-century Iran
Meet in the Burrell Courtyard.
Noorah Al-Gailani, Curator of Islamic Civilizations.

Wednesday 31 March, 2pm
The Shahnameh: A Persian medieval epic and manifesto of benevolence, justice and wisdom
The Burrell Lecture Theatre.
In this lecture Azin Haghighi, an Iranian poet and PhD researcher at the University of Strathclyde, explores the epic poem Shahnameh (The Book of Kings) – which tells the story of Iran from creation to the dawn of Islam, and the life of its author Firdawsi (AD 935–1020).

Saturday 3 April, 2pm
Carpet Gardeners (for families)
Drop in workshop, Families.
To celebrate the display of a unique Persian garden carpet, help us create a giant garden inside the museum.

Sunday 4 April, 2.30 – 4.30pm
Garden of Heaven Story Telling for Families
(Also on 11 April).
In association with the Village Story Telling Centre.
For description of event, see above the entry for Sunday 28 March.

Tuesday 6 April, 10.30am -12noon
Zest: Garden of Heaven (for families)
(Also on Thursday 8 April).  Booking required.
Exercise your green thumb with workshops exploring a unique Persian garden carpet.  Please phone 0141 287 2564 or email BurrellL&A@csglasgow.org to book in advance as places are limited.

Tuesday 6 April, 2pm - 4pm
Zest: Garden of Heaven (for youth)
(Also on Thursday 8 April),
Drop in art workshop, for 13 – 16 year olds.
Green art and design at the Burrell – learn more about the Persian garden carpet on display and design your own garden of heaven.

Thursday 8 April, 10.30am -12noon
Zest: Garden of Heaven (for families)
Booking required.
For description of event, see above the entry for Tuesday 6 April, 10.30am – 12noon.

Thursday 8 April, 2pm - 4pm
Zest: Garden of Heaven (for youth)
Drop in art workshop for 13 – 16 year olds.
For description of event, see above the entry for Tuesday 6 April, 2pm – 4pm.

Sunday 11 April, 2.30 – 4.30pm
Garden of Heaven Story Telling for Families
In association with the Village Story Telling Centre.
For description of event, see above the entry for Sunday 28 March.

Where:
The Burrell Collection, Pollok Country Park, 2060 Pollokshaws Road, Glasgow G43 1AT
Website: www.glasgowmuseums.com

Contacts:
Burrell Collection Public Enquiries Desk Tel. 0141 287 2550
Curator of Islamic Civilisations Tel. 0141 287 2563  E-mail: noorah.gailani@csglasgow.org