10' x 14'2" Heriz Serapi Rug | Burgundy Field, Ivory Stepped Medallion | New, Made in India

A new, never used room-size piece, this rug measures 10' x 14'2" and was knotted entirely by hand in India in the classic Heriz Serapi manner. The wool pile sits on a cotton foundation, the ends finish in hand-tied ivory fringe, and the weight of the rug in person tells you how much yarn went into it. Every knot is tied by hand, one at a time, which is why the drawing wanders very slightly from side to side in the way only a handmade Oriental rug does. It is a true 10 by 14 footprint, one of the most useful proportions we sell, and it arrives with a certificate of authenticity confirming the weave, the materials and the origin.

Design and Motifs

The layout is the textbook Serapi arrangement, drawn with straight lines and stepped edges rather than curves. A large ivory medallion sits dead center, stepped in eight directions, holding a small burgundy cartouche with a green cross-shaped device and 4 saffron gold panels arranged around it, each panel filled with tiny leaf and bud figures. Long serrated pendants run north and south from the medallion into the burgundy field, ending in pale green and apricot palmettes. The 4 corners are filled with ivory spandrels that carry black blue cartouches and angular flowering trees, a hallmark of this family of geometric medallion rugs. The main border repeats rosettes and curling vine on burgundy, framed inside and out by sage grey guard stripes of small cruciform blossoms, with a broad saffron gold outer band of scrolling flowers closing the composition.

Rustic Burgundy, Ivory and Olive Across the Field

The dominant color is a rustic burgundy, deep and slightly brick-toned rather than bright, and it reads differently depending on which way the pile is brushed, going darker into the nap and warmer with it. Against that ground the ivory medallion and spandrels do the heavy lifting, a creamy undyed wool tone that keeps the whole rug from feeling heavy. Olive green appears in the serrated leaves, the small cross motif at the center and the guard stripes, cooled further by touches of sage grey. Saffron gold carries the outer border and the 4 medallion panels, while apricot and soft peach turn up in the palmettes and vine work. The black blue corner cartouches are nearly ink dark and give the design its punctuation. Cream, burgundy, gold and olive together make this an easy rug to build a room around.

Woven in India in the Serapi Tradition

India is where most of the world's good contemporary hand-knotted work is now made, and this piece shows why. The weavers working in the Serapi tradition keep the angular village drawing intact, use a heavy dense wool pile that stands up to traffic, and finish the rug on a firm cotton foundation with flat selvages and even fringe, all of which you can see on the folded corner and rolled-edge photos. The knotting is consistent from end to end, the borders meet correctly at all 4 corners, and the wool has a natural sheen that improves with vacuuming and age. At 10' x 14'2" it belongs with the other 10 x 14 Oriental rugs we stock, large enough to carry a full seating group with all legs on, and heavy enough that it will not travel across the floor.