10'6" x 16' Persian Isfahan Rug | Wool | Navy Blue

A 10'6" x 16' carpet knotted by hand in Persia, with a wool pile of 3/8" and a field so deep a blue it reads near black in the photographs. A pale eight-point star medallion sits at the centre, ivory corner spandrels frame the field, and a wide madder red border of rosettes and leaves carries the whole thing. It is a rectangular piece in new perfect condition, long enough for a dining table with chairs pulled clear or for a room where two seating groups share the floor.

The design

The Isfahan drawing here is curvilinear and closely worked. From the central rosette a star medallion opens outward in slate blue, sand and a soft celadon, its points filled with small red tulips and cloud-collar shapes, and the whole figure floats on a field of fine vine scroll hung with palmettes, split leaves and lotus heads. The ivory spandrels at each corner turn the same vinework in larger curls, with serrated leaves and blue arabesques reaching in toward the field. The main red border runs a rhythm of rosettes and paired leafy stems, and is flanked on both sides by ivory and blue guard stripes, the innermost a narrow chain of small stars and flower heads.

The colour

The field is the darkest register of navy, nearly black between the flowers, which makes the pale medallion and the saffron and gold blossoms read cleanly across it. Around it the border is a warm madder red, brick where the light crosses the pile, and the ivory of the spandrels and guard stripes sits between the two as a break. Through the drawing there are smaller notes: a dusty slate blue, a muted celadon green, terracotta and a rusty orange in the flower centres, with white outlines picking out the leaves.

The making

Hand-knotted in Persia with a wool pile of 3/8", the piece is dense enough to hold the fine detail of the medallion and the narrow guard stripes without blurring, as the back in the last photograph shows. The wool takes the dyes with a slight sheen where the pile lies flat, and the ivory fringe and selvedges are intact. The table records the condition as new perfect. Other pieces of this kind can be seen across the full collection.