ground or
the floor, the like of which has also been in use on couches and seats
and sometimes even for wall or tent hangings or curtains. In modern
times, however, carpet usually means a patterned fabric woven with a
raised surface of tufts (either cut or looped), and used as a floor
covering. Other floor coverings are and have been made also without such
a tufted surface, and of these some are simple shuttle-woven materials
plain or enriched with needlework or printed with patterns, others are
woven after the manner of tapestry-weaving (see TAPESTRY) or in
imitation of it, and a further class of carpets is made of felt (see
FELT). This last material is entirely different from that of shuttle or
tapestry weaving. Although carpet weaving by hand is, and for centuries
has been, an Oriental industry, it has also been, and is still, pursued
in many European countries. Carpet-weaving by steam-driven machinery is
solely European in origin, and was not brought to the condition of
meeting a widespread demand until the 19th century.

PLATE I

[Illustration: FIG. 1.--PART OF A LINEN COVERING OVER-WROUGHT WITH
ORNAMENT IN LOOPS OF COLOURED WOOLS.

Egypto-Roman of the 3rd or 4th century A.D. (Victoria and Albert
Museum, South Kensington.)]

[Illustration: FIG. 2.--PART OF A LINEN COVERING OVER-WROUGHT WITH
ORNAMENT IN LOOPS OF DARK-BROWN WOOL.

Egypto-Roman of the 3rd or 4th century A.D. (Victoria and Albert
Museum, South Kensington.)]

[Illustration: FIG. 3.--CUT PILE TURKEY CARPET, 18th CENTURY,
EXEMPLIFYING SUCH CHARACTERISTIC ANGULAR TREATMENT OF QUASI-BOTANICAL
FORMS AS IS USUALLY FOUND IN CARPETS AND RUGS MADE IN ASIA MINOR. FROM
DESIGNS OF PERSIAN OR MOSIL ORIGIN. (Victoria and Albert Museum, South
Kensington.)]

PLATE II

[Illustration: FIG 4.--RUG MADE IN PERSIA IN THE MANNER OF TAPESTRY
WEAVING]

[Illustration: FIG. 5.--CARPET OF STOUT FLAX OR HEMP WOVEN AND THEN
COMPLETELY COVERED WITH ORNAMENT WORKED IN CLOSE NEEDLE STITCHES IN
COLOURED THREADS.]

History.

In connexion with the word "carpet" (Lat. _carpita_, rug; O. Fr.
_carpite_) notice may be taken of the Gr. [Greek: Tapaes] and the Lat.
_tapetium_, whence also comes the Fr. _tapis_ (the present word for
"carpet") as well as our own word "tapestry." This latter, though now
more particularly descriptive of hangings and curtains woven in a
special way, was, in later medieval times, indiscriminately applied t