Mid-20th Century Handmade Spanish Savonnerie-Style Runner Rug in Dark Blue

A vintage Turkish Art Deco runner handmade during the mid-20th century.

An antique Persian Serab rug in runner format with a rustic appeal handmade during the early 20th century. Measures: 2' 1" x 12' 1" Persian Rugs & Carpets: Persia (Iran) is a ...

A vintage Persian Quom accent rug, in the Art Deco style, handmade during the mid-20th century. Measures: 4' 7" x 7' 1".

A vintage Persian tribal Turkoman rug in runner format handmade during the mid-20th century. Although this rug is of Persian origin, the roots of Turkoman rugs originated in the Central Asian region. Measures: 1' 6" x 10' 4" Central Asian Rugs & Carpets: Central Asia is a vast area stretching from Northeastern Persia to western China, and from northern Afghanistan to the southern edge of Russia. The carpets can be usefully divided into three groups: the nomadic Turkmen rugs of Turkmenistan, northern Afghanistan, and northeastern Persia; the non-Turkmen tribal pieces from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Kirghizstan; and the urban creations of Khotan, Yarkand, and Kashgar, oasis cities of Western China (Xinjiang Province). Commercially, the most important group is from Khotan, the easternmost of the Chinese Turkestan cities. The craft of rug weaving is primarily in the hands of Muslim Uighurs. Khotan carpets mix purely Central Asian design themes with Chinese elements. Native Khotan devices include pomegranate trees, upright flowers, round medallions, and yellow or red grounds. Chinese motives include triangular fretwork corners, swastika fretwork, and Yun-Tsao Tou (clouds and rain) diagonally striped polychrome borders. Cotton foundations, asymmetrical (Persian) knots, and medium weaves are standard. Some vintage Khotan are in horizontal, pictorial layouts with multiple various vases and plants. Saphs (multiple prayer niche panel carpets) are also a Khotan specialty. Others employ stepped and layered lozenge medallions, singly or in pairs. Still others, almost all antique, feature a stylized version of the allover Persian Herati design. Many of the oldest pieces employ brown wool wefts. Antique and vintage Khotans are almost always in the k’ang (double square) layout, conforming to the local household plans. Only relatively recently has the 6’ by 12’ or 7’ by 16’ format been replaced by the 9’ by 12’ size. As a result, an antique room size Khotan carpet is very uncommon. Reds are cinnamon, tomato and rust, never wine reds, crimson, or scarlet. Yarkand, farther west on the old Silk Road specializes in multi-medallion long carpets while Kashgar, farthest west and most under Persian influence, has traditionally knotted allover pattern pieces with finer weaves, often with silk piles, and enriched with medal thread, on cotton foundations. Extant Kashgars go back to the 17th century, but the carpet craft in Chinese Turkestan must be much older as fragments have been recovered from local tombs of the early C.E. period. Kashgars are the rarest of all East Turkestan rugs. Most available vintage East Turkestan carpets are interwar Khotans, many with pleasingly soft decorative palettes. The non-Turkmen nomads include the Kazakh, Kirghiz, Uzbek, and Karakalpak groups. Like the Turkmen, they were once all seasonally migratory, dwelling in round felt tents (yurts), but have been settled, at least partially, in the villages, and have taken up crafts and agriculture instead of sheep herding. As a result, carpet production has transitioned from domestic tent use to commercial sale, but the roots of long traditions are still evident. The Uzbeks weave...

This antique, circa 1880, Caucasian runner features a shaded mid-blue field with two columns of polychrome floral motifs forming a quartered design each quarter with a boteh or a sin...

Vintage 1920s Spanish Cuenca Design Runner (Fragment) Size: 4'5" × 24'9" (134 × 754 cm) This striking vintage runner is a rare fragment of a 1920s Spanish Cuenca carpet, showcasing t...

“Northwest” refers to a diverse group of antique Persian rugs in myriad weaving villages and encampments that during the 19th century occupied an expansive wilderness area west of Tehran, north of Bijar, and south of Tabriz. These villages borrowed patterns and weaving styles from a scope of different areas and influences, combing them into something unmistakably unique. Many smaller rug weaving villages, too numerous to name, also contribute to the broad treasure trove of carpets from this area. All of these largely unknown villages...

Persian rug-making at its finest inspired the rich colors, elaborate geometric motifs, and botanical detailing of the Serapi collection. With as many as 100 knots per inch, these han...