9'11" x 15'9" Persian Tabriz Rug | Wool | Red, Ivory and Green

A hand-knotted Tabriz from Persia, 9'11" x 15'9" and rectangular, with a 3/8" wool pile. At a glance it is a long red field with a large ivory medallion at the centre, pale green corners and a dark navy main border, drawn small and densely throughout rather than in broad shapes.

Design

The medallion is a lobed ivory oval with a light blue rosette cluster at its heart, small salmon and green cartouches around that, and pendants running out top and bottom into the field. The field itself is filled edge to edge with tiny flowerheads, lattice panels, cypress and weeping willow forms and curling leaves, so that the ground reads as pattern rather than as open colour. The corner spandrels are pale green and carry their own palmettes and flowering sprays, cut off cleanly by the medallion's outline. The main border alternates rounded rosette medallions with upright willow and vase motifs, and is framed on both sides by narrow ivory guard stripes of small scrolling flowers.

Colour

The field is a madder red that shifts toward rose where the light crosses the pile, as the floor photographs show. Against it the medallion and guard borders are a warm ivory, and the corner spandrels a soft sage green that cools the whole end of the rug. The main border is a very dark navy, near black in shadow, which pulls the red in and keeps the outline crisp. Smaller accents of pale blue, coral, olive and rose pink appear in the flowerheads and rosettes.

Making

Hand-knotted in Persia in wool, with a 3/8" pile and ivory fringe at both ends. The reverse, shown against a rule, is a fine even weave with the drawing legible knot for knot, which is what allows the small-scale field motifs to hold their shape. Condition is listed as excellent. It is one of the larger pieces among our hand-knotted rugs, long enough for a full dining table or a wide hall.