Art. VII.—On the White-haired Angora Goat, and on another species of Goat found in the same province, resembling the Thibet Shawl Goat

Arthur Conolly

doi:10.1017/S0035869X00142650

Art. VII.—On the White-haired Angora Goat, and on another species of Goat found in the same province, resembling the Thibet Shawl Goat

Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 March 2011

Arthur Conolly

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On a recent-excursion through part of Asia Minor, being accompanied by a friend who spoke Turkish and Armenian perfectly, I noted some information that he collected, first regarding the long famed silvery white-hair goat of Angora, and next about a goat resembling the shawl goat of Thibet, that exists throughout the country to which the first beautiful animal is peculiar. I was about to forward the said notes from Constantinople, with a box of specimens for the Society, when learning that the second species of goat alluded to abounded in other parts of Turkey, through or near which I should shortly travel, I put my memorandums aside in the hope of being able to extend them. I now beg to offer the result of the whole inquiry thus far, having for the convenience of illustration separated the details concerning each race of the animal under remark.

Type: Research Article
Information: Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society , Volume 6 , Issue 11 , January 1841 , pp. 159 - 172

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0035869X00142650 [Opens in a new window]
Copyright: Copyright © The Royal Asiatic Society 1985

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^{page 159 note 1} See Spec. A., Nos. 1 and 2.

^{page 159 note 2} A village named from Nomade families so called, who inhabit the mountains above it.

^{page 159 note 3} This probably is the point noted by Kinnier, as “Wullee Khan,” for we met no person who knew a place of the latter name.

^{page 160 note 1} It is remarkable that wherever these goats exist, the cats and greyhounds have long silky hair also; the cats all over their bodies, the greyhounds chiefly nn their and cars tails. Rome of the natives would refer this peculiarity to their “air and water,” but are perplexed to account for the nonparticipation of other animals who eat and drink the same fluids. A similar difficulty attends those who would attribute the peculiarity to diet; as sheep's food differs entirely from that of cats and dogs. Possibly hares and other furry animals in this region, have their coats altered also, more or less. Our native friends did not seem ever to have inquired. The sheep dogs are fine animals, with thick shaggy coats, but we did not think their hair unusually fine.

^{page 160 note 2} This rough calculation is made from the measured height of Angora, by Pr. Ainsworth, (i. e. 2769 feet,) and native statements about the variation of elimate in the different provinces above named.

^{page 160 note 3} Originally a Persian word.

^{page 161 note 1} A weight of 400 Turkish dirhems, or drachms, equal to about 2¾ lbs. English.

^{page 161 note 2} See Spec. B.

^{page 161 note 3} See the pair in the box of specimens.

^{page 162 note 1} Sec Spec. C.

^{page 162 note 2} Spec. D.

^{page 162 note 3} A medical friend describes it as a plant of the Asphodoly family, which grows on all the high table lands of Armenia. Shoemakers are said to use the dried flour as “size” where the plant is common; but I found a different article in use at all the shoemakers' bazars in Constantinople.

^{page 163 note 1} Tobacco for the Turkish pipe is damned by a similar process.

^{page 163 note 2} Moorcroft shows that the preparers of goats' wool and yarn for the Kashmere shawl manufacture, take pains to impart mucilage to each; first kneading the cleaned wool with damp rice Hour, and afterwards dipping the yarn into thick boiled rice water.

^{page 163 note 3} See Spec. F.

^{page 164 note 1} See Spec. G.

^{page 164 note 2} See Spec. H.

^{page 164 note 3} A near village named Stenzes, at which fine Sôf is made, was mentioned to us as the only other place at which looms were known to exist, and these did not number a dozen.

^{page 165 note 1} Year of commercial distress, therefore exhorts much diminished.

^{page 165 note 2} June, 1839.

^{page 166 note 1} Formerly there were thirty-six merchants in Constantinople who traded exclusively in Angora stuffs and Mohair yarn; now there are but six, and the Angora “Khan” is nearly deserted.

^{page 166 note 2} Tournefort, , in 1701Google Scholar, rated the population of Angora at about 45,000 inhabitants. Kinnier, in 1817, estimated it at 20,000. Our accounts give now but a total of 13,000, of whom many hundreds would instantly emigrate if permitted. We saw hut twelve looms at work, because the Sultan bad ordered n levy of 150 Christians as pioneers to his army, and all able-bodied weavers were hiding themselves.

^{page 166 note 3} See Spec. I.

^{page 167 note 1} You cannot make satisfactory inquiries in these countries without time to put repeated questions. A Constantinople merchant told me, on the authority of his brother-in-law, that the best Angora “dehrem” was exported to India for the shawl manufacture in Kashmere. The brother-in-law being appealed to, said that he had only expressed wonder that it was not so exported, and it came out that he conceived Iliudostan to lie somewhere in the vieinity of England.

^{page 167 note 2} See Spec. J.

^{page 167 note 3} We noticed after shearing time, that all the Hocks we saw were led by piebald goats that had not been clipped like the rest; but our information regarding the first mixture and subsequent crossing of these two breeds, was imperfect.

^{page 168 note 1} In the interior of Persia this sort of wool is called “Koark.”

^{page 168 note 2} See Spec. K.

^{page 168 note 3} Spec. L. I did not ascertain whether any are exported to Enrope. Probably not, except as occasional presents, as their price would not enable them to compete with our lamb's wool fabries of similar kind.

^{page 170 note 1} It would be easy, by writing to some resident in Constantinople, to get a measured quantity of the best rough “dehrem” cleaned as perfectly as possible at Angora, by handpicking, finespun, and then woven into a piece of shawl stuff in one or the looms used for the hair Shalli, or Sof.

^{page 170 note 2} The refuse might sell for something at the picking place.

^{page 171 note 1} The heavy, periodical rains on the southern side of the great Himalayan Chain, might injuriously affect animals accustomed to a dry climate.

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Art. VII.—On the White-haired Angora Goat, and on another species of Goat found in the same province, resembling the Thibet Shawl Goat

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