Imaginarul feminin reprezentat în scoarțele basarabene din secolul al XIX-lea – începutul secolului XX
The Feminine Imagery represented on the Bessarabian wall carpets from the 19th – early 20th century

Summary/Abstract: The article is an analysis of the views of ethnographers from the perspective of the social and cultural context in which Bessarabian wall carpets (“scoarțe”) were created, during the 19th – early 20th century. According to the theories of ethnographers, wall carpets were designed in a distinct Moldovan style, having deep roots in the traditions of this domain, in previous centuries. It is a novelty the interpretation of the most valuable woollen fabrics – “scoarțe” –, as a source for studying women’s images about themselves. Being sensible towards the beauty of the world around them and the perennial values, weavers created until the mid-19th century in the spirit of a traditional view of life and human being. Through the art of weaving, they shaped and managed a rich fund of images, of various ages; they bestowed upon them practical functions, as well as functions within ceremonies and rituals. Among these, the woman weaver created her own image. The innovations in dyeing wool and the ornamental composition, which penetrated in the mid-19th century, contributed to radical changes in the art of wall carpets and, accordingly, in the women’s imagery represented on wall carpets. These modifications are analysed from the perspective of the psychology of women, who preferred to imitate drawings created by European artists, and “received” naturalism in decorative art; however, these changes can suggest that women became more open towards the modernizing tendencies of the society and to some extent more conscious of themselves.

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