5'6" x 9'7" Persian Yalameh Rug | Tribal Diamond Lattice | Antique, Excellent Condition

This is an antique tribal weaving from southern Persia in a size that suits real rooms: 5'6" x 9'7" of dark maroon and deep navy wool, knotted by hand into an unbroken lattice of serrated diamonds. The pile is dense and still even underfoot, the selvages and both end finishes are original, and the drawing has the confident, slightly irregular hand of a weaver working from memory rather than a paper cartoon. It is the kind of piece collectors call honest: nothing restored, nothing re-dyed, nothing dressed up. Every rug we sell ships with a certificate of authenticity documenting origin, materials and hand-knotted construction.

Design and Motifs

The field carries a full all-over geometric design: rows of large diamonds outlined in ivory zigzag, each one framed by a hooked, key-fret inner band and centered on a stepped 8 point star or a twin-lobed Memling style gul. The diamonds alternate between maroon grounds and dark blue grounds down the length of the rug, so the eye reads a diagonal rhythm rather than a static grid. In the interstices the weaver has filled every gap with small crosses, checkerboard squares, S forms, hooked triangles and tiny rosettes, and along the sides you can see two feathered cypress or tree of life forms and a handful of stylized figural and comb-like motifs in the bottom register. The main border is ivory, drawn with a running chain of hooked diamonds and 8 petal rosettes, flanked by narrow reciprocal guard stripes and an outer teal blue band of slanted leaves and stars.

Color: Dark Maroon, Navy and Ivory

Dark maroon is the dominant note, ranging from an oxblood burgundy in the larger diamonds to a softer brick rose where the wool has taken the dye more lightly. It sits against a ground that shifts between deep navy, inky indigo and near-black charcoal, with visible abrash across the width that tells you the yarn was dyed in small lots. Against those dark tones the weaver set clear accents: chalky ivory for the lattice outlines and the main border, a bright light teal blue in the star centers and the outer band, warm camel and gold in the small rosettes, and touches of pale rose and aubergine in the fillers. The combination is dark and saturated in low light and much warmer in daylight, and it works easily over walnut, oak or wide plank floors as well as with charcoal, cream or brass furnishings.

Origin and Weaving Quality: Yalameh of Fars, Southern Persia

Yalameh rugs come from the Fars highlands of southern Persia, in the villages around Aliabad north of Shiraz, woven by settled weavers of Luri descent who kept the geometric vocabulary of their nomadic ancestors. Among antique Persian tribal rugs, Yalameh work is prized for two things: the quality of the wool, which comes from mountain flocks and stays lustrous and springy for generations, and a knot count noticeably tighter than most village weaving, which is why the small fillers and the fine ivory zigzag outlines hold their shape here. The wool foundation, the finely woven ends and the corroded-free, evenly worn pile all point to an older piece, and if you want to understand the evidence yourself our guide on how to date an oriental rug walks through the same details we look at on the back. At 5'6" x 9'7" this one has the density and structure to take daily traffic without complaint.