8' x 10' Serapi Oriental Rug | Geometric Medallion | Camel Field | Brand New

This 8' x 10' Serapi is brand new and never used, hand-knotted in wool on a cotton foundation and sold with a certificate of authenticity. It is a genuine hand-knotted Oriental rug, not a machine made print of one, and the photographs on the folded corner show exactly that: a firm handle, a clean knotted back and a dense, evenly clipped pile. The drawing is the classic Serapi formula, a broad camel field framed by deep ivory corners, with a coral red star medallion holding the center. Among 8x10 Oriental rugs this is the format that works hardest, large enough to carry a full seating group yet still quiet enough to live under everyday furniture.

Design and Motifs

The center is an 8 pointed coral red star medallion with a navy inner cartouche and, at its heart, an 8 petal rosette ringed in green and pale blue. Four octagonal panels filled with light blue quatrefoil blossoms sit inside the red field of the medallion, and short serrated leaves and hooked arabesques radiate out from it. Above and below, two dark pendants shaped like serrated leaves float on the open field, each one haloed by coral red rays, a device collectors recognize instantly in geometric medallion rugs of this type. The field itself is drawn loosely with small blossoms, bent vines and single leaves rather than a tight repeat, which is what gives a Serapi its relaxed, open look. The stepped ivory spandrels carry large curling green palmettes with scrolling vine. The wide coral red main border alternates ivory and peach rosettes with vine and leaf, flanked by mid blue guard stripes stamped with small red and green cross motifs, and a fine ivory reciprocal stripe runs along the edge into the barber pole selvage.

A Camel Field with Coral Red, Blue and Ivory

The field reads as a warm camel gold that shifts toward a soft olive green cast where the light strikes it, and that neutral tone is what makes the rest of the palette work. The medallion and main border are a clear coral red, closer to tomato than to burgundy, outlined in charcoal so the shapes stay crisp. Inside the medallion the color drops to a deep indigo navy, while mid blue and a chalky light blue carry the quatrefoil panels, the guard stripes and many of the smaller leaves. The corners are a creamy ivory, almost oyster, and the palmettes drawn on them are a true bottle green with olive shading. Peach and salmon highlights appear in the border rosettes and in the small field blossoms, warming the whole surface, and touches of forest green run through the crosses and leaf tips. Charcoal and black outlines hold every motif in place. The overall effect is warm and antique looking rather than bright, which is why it sits easily on wood floors and against both cream and green painted walls.

Made in India: Weaving and Quality

This rug was knotted in India, which is where most of the world's good contemporary hand-knotted weaving is now done, and the workshops that produce Serapi drawing there do it to a standard that stands up to close inspection. The wool is high luster and spun with enough body to take a medium pile, so the clipped surface shows the pattern sharply instead of blurring it, as the detail of the border and the medallion rosette make plain. The foundation is cotton, which keeps a rug this size flat and square, and the back photograph shows regular, tight rows with no gaps or pulled lines. Edges are hand-whipped in wool and the fringe is hand-knotted from the warps rather than sewn on, the finish you expect from serious handmade Oriental rugs. Condition is perfect, never used, with full pile throughout and no wear, stains or repairs anywhere on the 8' x 10' surface.