Vintage Shirvan Kilim Rug, Caucasian Carpet

About the Item

This is an old Shirvan Kilim from the Caucasus region with a rare and beautiful color composition. Of the four countries that make up the Caucasus, Azerbaijan produces the most kilims, and the land has a long history of weaving. The nomadic tribes wove kilims and carpets as well as a wide range of storage bags and sacks, such as saffrash, khurgin and chula, and donkey and horse trappings. Smaller bags for salt, utensils, and other items are also common. Not only are the Azerbaijani weavers prolific, but they also employ many techniques at the loom. These include slitweave- known locally by the word kilim, warp-faced patterning (jajim), supplementary weft (zili), weft wrapping (popularly known as soumak), and extra weft wrapping (verneh). Furthermore, flatweaves are defined by regional names such as palas and shadda, so it is possible to ascribe a variety of weaving names to particular provenances as follows: soumaks are made in Kuba, palas, and kilims in Hajikabul, zili in Khizy, verneh and zili in Kazakh, shadda, verneh and zili in Barda, jajim in Agjabedi, and palas and kilims in Jabrail. Shirvan Kilim is a kilim woven by farmers in the Shirvan plains in central Azerbaijan. This region is a mountainous region between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea and is called the Caucasus region. In this isolated mountainous region where traditions have been preserved, there are many carpets, and the variety and number of kilims are very small, but the quality is highly evaluated in the world. Because there are few, it is a very valuable kilim. Such large, bold impressions are characteristic of the kilims of this region. The kilims of this region have such distinct characteristics that in the past it was possible to identify each production area by its pattern. Shirvan kilims in particular have horizontal stripes without borders like this one. Best of all is the beauty of the deep shades and their contrast with the white of the cotton. Purple also has variations such as dark red, grape color, and deep purple, and blue also has variations such as dark blue, greenish blue, purplish blue, and ultramarine blue, and there are countless combinations with orange, pink, brown, and white. The precise and firm weaving shows a high level of skill. This kilim must have been carefully protected and woven.

Dimensions:

Width: 72.45 in (184 cm)Length: 131.89 in (335 cm)

Style:

Kilim (In the Style Of)

Materials and Techniques:

Natural Fiber,Wool,Hand-Knotted,Hand-Woven

Place of Origin:

Caucasus

Period:

Late 20th Century

Date of Manufacture:

circa 1970