Exciting Modernism in a 100 Year Old Antique Ardebil Perfect Condition

From a Boston Collector. Remarkably Creative. This is another of our small stock of Afshar collectibles which astonish as to their artistic form. This example was recently acquired from a Boston collector’s estate. The wool, very soft, is of excellent quality and the weave very fine, the rug in superior condition. Boston Antique carpet expert Michael Grogan declared it as one of the very finest and most original Afshar rugs he had ever seen. This piece was recently used along with two others in a lecture series which pondered the question of likely influence of tribal (and arguably other Persian e,g, Montasham Kashan) rugs on the development of Western 20th century painting. The abrupt break with traditional forms by a gifted female weaver in a remote location and in the throes of a nomadic life, considering her circumstances, is awe inspiring. The wide and in cases unusual colors deployed (note the dark browns probably achieved with walnut shells in the dye vat...

Malayer pure lamb’s wool. A prime example of quality village/town weaving with tribal undertones from Malayer at mid-20th century. The deep indigo background is rich and compelling, along with the unusual turquoise used...

From a prominent East Coast USA Dealer Sultanabad is the former name of Arak, a main center for weaving, and the locale of the famous Ferahan Sarouks, amongst other classic types and styles . In the late 19th century several significant European based companies established there to produce quality rugs and especially larger carpets for the Western market, utilyzing local talent. (Foremost among these was the Zeigler firm, and Zeigler Sultanabads...

Isfahans, true, are not for everyone, but those who appreciate the intensity of their particular artform, very fine weave, great durability, and the beautiful feel, love living with ...

A very hard to find Yazd rug, woven in a village near Yazd the desert city of Iran – a village which by all accounts has ceased weaving , since about 1960. This piece is a superior e...

Acquired from a Swedish collector Ferahan Sarouk carpets produced around the wider Arak (city) area from about 1850-1900 earned a deserved reputation as amongst the most desirable and imaginative finely woven carpets in Persia. As these things go, they morphed in style around 1910- 1920 into the differently woven Mahajirhan Sarouk fashion (quality examples of which are also in demand) and then disappeared entirely. Their desirability rests not only on fine weaving, and excellent wool. Many of the better examples were commissioned by aristocrats or wealthy merchants who encouraged new approaches and creativity, one source of their excellence. Beyond this lay a more fundamental and seemingly contradictory set of motivations by the weavers. At one and the same time they sought to emulate the great court carpets in finesse and design, and yet-- they applied rustic or village, and even tribal elements and nuances to their designs. The result was a cavalcade of creativity. So, a village-based genre came into being which produced primarily an approx. 6x4 rug size format, and also provided, if more rarely, larger formats, which command increasingly high prices, due to their rarity, visual excitement and grandeur. The artistic achievement of this “school” had to do with marrying elegance and a degree of formalism with whimsy, and design innovation. They offer a charm and a certain magic beyond that of court and most city carpets. As in any area or era, there is a quality spectrum ranging from mediocre to highly superior. Superiority is judged of course as to weave and wool quality. It is rather unusual, though, to encounter pieces made before 1890 -which are bona fide Ferahan Sarouks- with poor wool or weaving: standards were upheld during this period, and natural dyes employed universally. Thus, as an investment collectible to adorn the home we believe the ultimate criterion is aesthetics, this being an art form, after all. Ferahan Sarouks have been a special area of interest for us over the decades both from artistic and investment perspectives. Allowing for personal taste, our suggestions are few and simple. A Ferahan Sarouk ought to display a wide colour palette, fine and creative drawing and delicate, sometimes “intense “detail. The finest pieces also display balance in the use of space. We have seen many finely woven pieces which in our view are garish and lack one of the two key artistic elements intrinsic to the better examples of this genre – elegance. Sometimes they are overly cluttered; the drawing artistry is muddled or lost. In other cases odd and ineffective design devices are used, detracting from or interfering with an otherwise good design. The era of the Ferahan Sarouk was rife with experiment, not all of them successful. The other important attribute, when it can be found, is original artistic creativity, even serendipity, -- or effective design innovation within the compass of this rug type and the unique standards of its prime period. On average, we examine between 20-30 antique Ferahan Sarouks...

This Fereghan rug has a brick-red field with a vase motif at each end issuing a floral spray and surrounded by a delicate polychrome floral vine around a central indigo-blue cusped m...

A beautiful antique Ardebil rug, hand woven circa 1920 with a floral design on a deep indigo field and red border. Wonderful secondary colours of greens, r...

Incredible Antique Persian Lori Runner 3' 9" x 12' Beautiful runner made of wool raised, sheared, dyed, spun and woven by the famous nomadic Persians known as The Lores. Lori rugs ...

Immaculate 100+ Year Old Lori 4' x 12' This beautiful rust toned runner was handwoven by the Lores, one of the most renowned rug weaving tribes of Persia. The Bakhtiari trace thei...

Unique 100 + Year Old Kashkooli Gabbeh 8ft x 3.5ft Enchanting old pictorial Gabbeh rug, handcrafted by masterful Kashkoolis of the Qashqais. This nomadic treasure features an unusu...

In a post-WWII Caucasian style, with three octagonal medallions dark slate blue and rusty goldenrod, with internal bird and octagon décor, on a sandy grounds, with boteh and rooster ...