Scandinavian Rya Rug Wall Hanging Tapestry, Finland

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Scandinavian Rya Rug Wall Hanging Tapestry, Finland

About the Item

Rya rug (Finnish ‘ryijy’) from an unknown weaver depicting buildings from the city of Turku. The year of manufacture 1939 and the weaver's initials TJ located in the uppermost part of the item, text Aboa Vetus Et Nova (Turku Old And New) at the bottom. Buildings depicted are in the top row the old main building of the university and the court of appeals building, in the middle row the observatory, the medieval cathedral of Turku with the Pinella colonnade in the front and the Samppalinna windmill on the right and in the bottom row the Brinkkala house and the Turku castle with the harbour on the right. Composition is complemented by a matching color palette of greys, turqoises and blues, rose, beige, brown and black. The short history of a relatively long pile The ’ryijy’ (in Finnish) or ’rya’ (in Swedish) is a traditional Scandinavian wool rug which has its roots in the prehistorically era of northernmost Europe. Ryas were originally multipurpose textiles used traditionally as bed coverings and blankets that provided insulation in harsh climates when traveling by boat or sleigh. Their design gradually combined original motifs from local Folk Art tradition, including influence from oriental rugs brought to Scandinavia by Viking merchants and later, imitations of Baroque floral patterns seen in expensive imported fabrics within the homes of the nobility. Since 18th century, the Ryas became part of the Finnish wedding ceremony as a sort of prayer rug upon which the bride and groom stood during the ceremony. The textile was then hung on the wall of the new home of the married couple as a tapestry and served as a memento of the happy occasion. All country houses had a Rya on their wall. A national Romanticism in the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries generated new interest in the use of folk textiles for interior decoration within new burdgeoning urban environments and inspired artists to make new Jugendstil influenced Rya designs. Following the recovery from World War II, the 1950s marked an international breakthrough of Finnish design. Functionalist furniture, ceramics, glassware and kitchen utensils became new areas of creative interest for a new generation of designers. This new wave of design influence led to a reinvention of the Rya as a modernist design piece during the golden age of Finnish design in the 1950s and 1960s. These Ryas were sold as kits with materials and design for home manufacturing as well as ready-made pieces by professional weavers such as Suomen Käsityön Ystävät (“The friends of handicrafts in Finland”). Both types can be considered genuine, for the tradition of Rya is essentially one of home manufacture and living Folk Art.

Dimensions:
Width: 39.38 in (100 cm)Length: 59.06 in (150 cm)
Style:
Scandinavian Modern (In the Style Of)
Materials and Techniques:
Cotton,Linen,Wool,Hand-Woven
Place of Origin:
Finland
Period:
Late 20th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1939
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. Minor fading.
Seller Location:
Helsinki, FI
Reference Number:
Seller: ryijy nr.61stDibs: LU4034317953962