One of Jeddah’s most popular souks is the Antique Souk. When asking for directions, people will call it the Airplane Souk, as it lies directly opposite Jeddah’s old airport and near an aircraft that rests atop a plinth and watches over the endless traffic. The old airport is no longer operational since it was superseded by King Abdul Aziz International Airport. The old airport now serves as a training center for Saudi Arabian Airlines.
The Antique Souk is a single long honeycombed line of shops. When the souk is doing brisk business people can be seen entering and exiting shops like busy bees flying in and out of the flower heads. The open displays of the eclectic collection of artifacts at the souk are truly amazing, and many hidden surprises are waiting to be discovered amongst the erratic piles of treasure. Collectables for sale include ceramics like vases, dishes and ornaments; the majority of them originate from the Far East. There are timepieces including a varied selection of silver pocket watches from England. There are some pocket watches that look truly old English and Victorian, but on closer inspection, they turn out to have been made in India. Other silverwork includes intricately engraved (filigree) Persian vases and plates. The older, valuable examples can be found locked away in glass viewing cabinets. The recently produced Iranian silverwork is on open display and can be easily accessed and handled. There is a fascinating arrangement of coins. Some coins originate from different parts of the Arabian Peninsula and a few are pre-Islamic and have hefty price tags. Roman coins are on view as are old and new coins from Europe and America, as well as coins from other parts of the world. Arab Bedu tribal attire and dress swords are well represented. Many of the Bedu women’s face coverings are relatively old and are made from fine silver chains that are decorated with old Arabian coins. Many of the dress swords originate from Saudi Arabia, but there are also examples from Yemen and Oman.
Furniture on display includes beautiful teak desks, tables and cabinets from India. There is a breathtaking assortment of intricately carved wooden Arabian door shutters. They have been covered with a sheet of glass and turned into coffee tables.
One of the shops has row after row of pre-war Bakelite radios. In the hot and musty silence of the shop you could easily imagine the stern voices of Churchill and Roosevelt crackling through the radios. The same shop had a couple of His Masters Voice gramophones complete with a selection of 78’s from the 1920’s and 1930’s and a spare box of gramophone needles. Both gramophones were copies from India but nevertheless very impressive.
Not all of the antique shops stock carpets, but the ones that do have a varied selection. Apart from the usual array of contemporary Iranian, Afghan, Pakistani, Russian and Kashmiri carpets, there is also a small, erratic supply of old and antique rugs and tribal textiles. Textiles include thirty-years-plus Afghan Balouch cushions and camel bags of various sizes and colors. Old rugs are available (eighty-years-plus) and examples include rugs produced by the Khamseh Confederacy in Southern Iran. The Khamseh Confederacy was historically an amalgamation of five different tribes. The tribes united in the belief that it would increase their ability to fend off attacks from marauding outsiders, so they remained independent and answerable to no one. Rugs woven by these tribes are generally labeled as Shiraz rugs due to the Khamseh Confederacy lying in close proximity to the city of Shiraz. Popular design details woven into these rugs include a central serrated diamond framed by a rectangular lozenge with a stepped pyramid at each end. Rams’ horns, abstract rosettes, detailed flower heads, serrated leaves and botehs are the small decorative details, all of which help bestow on these older rugs a relaxed and peaceful geometric symmetry. A small amount of old tribal rugs and tent cushions from Turkmenistan are on view, originating from the Tekke, Yomut and Sarouk tribes.
All of the dealers at the Antique Souk agree that Iranian carpets are by far the most popular with their customers, followed by Afghani, Russian and Pakistani. The many Iranian carpets for sale included Tabriz, Qum, Nain, Esfahan, Kashan, Bakhtiari, Ardabil, Qashqa’i, and of course, Shiraz.
The overall selection and quality of Afghani rugs is also good. There is a handful of Suleiman design carpets (large elephant foot guls) woven with rich, dark red and black wool. Other rugs include Afghan Beshiri, Alma gul design (apple blossom) and Kunduz rugs. Kunduz is not a weaving town but lends its name to woven rugs produced in smaller villages located in the vicinity. Rugs labeled Andkhoy and Kunduz are usually produced with excellent quality wool and often display a fine standard of weaving.
The Pakistani rugs are of the usual type found elsewhere in Jeddah. The Russian Tekke (Bokhara) design (a favourite with Pakistani weavers) was prevalent in brash and garish pinks, greens, reds, and purples. Traditionally, the warps were of thick bright white cotton, which is a useful identifying factor in distinguishing Pakistani carpets. Overall, the quality of these rugs is low to medium and the prices asked for are too high.
The Kashmiri rugs that are for sale typically display soft pastel pinks, reds, greens, and blues. The rugs are woven with mercerised cotton (art silk) where the cotton is treated to make it look and feel like real silk.
The shop managers at the Antique Souk buy the majority of their antiques, carpets and rugs from local Saudi families. Although the selection of rugs and carpets is very interesting and at times very tempting, the prices asked for, generally speaking, are rather steep. Furthermore, the salesmen selling the carpets are not prepared to reduce their prices by a significant amount. Therefore, if you do visit the Antique Souk, be prepared to use your razor sharp bartering skills accompanied by endless amounts of patience. The Antique Souk, however, is a wonderful place to visit and a memorable experience. You will require at least two hours to visit all of the shops to enable you to at least have a cursory glance over the myriad of artefacts. The evening time may be a better time to visit as during the morning, a few of the shops are not open. Happy bargain hunting!
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Visit: www.warpsandwefts.com
- Arab News Features 7 August 2003
