Antique Long Gendje Caucasian Prayer Rug

This is admittedly a collector’s piece, for a connoisseur. Melas rugs became known and appreciated in Europe as early as 1700, though its history of weaving goes back at least severa...

Ferahan Sarouk Museum Quality MUSEUM QUALITY Ferahan Sarouk, third quarter 19th century 6.6 x 4.5 feet From a USA collector Ferahan Sarouk carpets produced around the wider Arak (formerly Sultanabad) area from about 1850-1910 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 creativity, in an actively competitive way; rugs during this period, as before, were direct illustrations of an individual’s wealth, power and prestige. 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 were widely employed, particularly in the wider Arak (then Sultanabad) region. 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 drawing and delicate, sometimes “intense “ detail. The finest pieces also display an elevated sense of 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 experiments, 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 30-40 antique Ferahan Sarouks to achieve one acquisition, for the benefit of our clients. This highly collectible more than 150-year-old carpet is an apex achievement of superior artistry and innovation. As an exemplar of its genre, it can be reasonably described as Museum quality, a term we do not often employ. Please observe the stunning precision of the inner guard and its pinpoint sharp hooks. The elongation of the central medallion is one of its subtle but powerful innovations in form. The nod to asymmetry – which displays a refined sense of humour - is seen in the use of the small diamond figures, as one is deliberately missing from the right hand side: a wry nod to asymmetry, in an otherwise perfectly symmetrical creation. The ultimate achievement here is in the fineness of the weaving itself, on close inspection. The herati pattern in the medallion and corners achieves an etched-on quality, a very uncommon level of attention to detail and perfectionism: clearly the work of a master. This artistic sense extends to the outer ground which is a superb example of the most subtle abrash, one of the most refined we have had the honor of viewing. The unusual beige/brown tones in the field were probably achieved by adding onion skins to the die vat. These extremely fine gradations of colour are rarely seen.(NB the colour photographs create a slightly misleading- overly yellow burnish to the field colour in spite of expert photographic efforts ) . The deliberate choice of an ink black use of indigo provides a powerful frame (border) for this piece of art, which note in the lower right-hand corner is lifted slightly through abrash to a deep blue – to highlight the design and use of emerald green in the rosettes. The green shades lighten as the border ascends harmonizing with the tones in the central medallion. The floating flow of flowers in the border is beautifully executed, with up to seven colours in a single figure. No doubt a piece commissioned by an aristocrat around 1870, it is – remarkably- in virtually perfect condition. It appears to have had very minimal footwear, and great care; a piece which was proudly displayed from time to time and appreciated. Its density and strong foundation would however allow regular use within a home, and in a spacious contemporary home or office could make a wall hanging of striking impact. This remarkable one of a kind piece is on short term reduction to coincide with our launch on 1st Dibs . Fair market value is approximately $22,000 . Fine art as investment ? The WSJ made the following comments this year : The vigor of the art market may seem counterintuitive, but it makes sense in the current environment,” economist Tyler Cowen recently wrote in The Washington Post. “First, many of the wealthy have been buying additional homes and wish to furnish them with art. Second, the recent run-up in inflation rates around the world has intensified the search for hedges.” While the aforementioned artworks fall into traditional categories, some less-prominent forms of fine art also represent ideal investment opportunities, especially because they offer more attractive—i.e., significantly less costly—entry points for new collectors. Take high-collectible and connoisseur-caliber antique Oriental rugs, for example. The best 19th-century examples often sell privately between five figures and low six figures. Today, that obscurity is fading. According to Ben Evans, the editor of Hali Magazine—a publication dedicated to the international rug and textile market—there are two primary factors to explain why antique rugs are beginning to enjoy their moment in the spotlight. “Cultural curiosity and collecting...

A beautiful little antique Gendje rug, handwoven in The Caucasus mountains of modern day Azerbaijan circa 1890. It features an unusual prayer rug design on a multicoloured lozenge fi...

Antique Konya Prayer rug. A beautiful antique rug from central Turkey, in a distinct prayer rug style attributed to the small hamlet of Inlice, southw...