9'2" x 11'11" Pakistani Oriental Rug | French Aubusson Floral Design | Ivory Field, Never Used

This is a hand-knotted wool rug drawn in the French Aubusson manner, woven in Pakistan and never put on a floor. The ivory field carries a soft oval medallion that is built entirely out of flowers rather than outlined in a hard frame, and the drawing stays symmetrical from end to end. At 9'2" x 11'11" it sits in the most useful room size there is, which is why 9x12 Oriental rugs in a light palette are the hardest ones to find in good condition. The pile is full, the fringe is clean and untrimmed, and the back is even with no repairs. Every rug we sell ships with a certificate of authenticity confirming that it is genuinely hand-knotted.

Design and Motifs

Aubusson drawing is European rather than tribal, and you can read that in the bouquets: full cabbage roses, carnations, tulips, cornflowers and little five petal blossoms tied together with ribbon bows and curling acanthus scrolls. The center is a broad oval bouquet, and the 4 quarters of the field mirror one another exactly, which takes a careful cartoon and a disciplined weaver. Around the field runs a wide ivory main border filled with footed flower vases and baskets, framed by slate blue guard bands of small rosettes and a running vine. A small woven cartouche sits in one of the lower guard borders. The all-over floral layout means furniture can sit anywhere on it without hiding a medallion.

A Pastel Palette on an Ivory Ground

The ground is a warm ivory, closer to fresh cream than to stark white, and it lets everything else read clearly. Blue does most of the work: powder and sky blue in the smaller blossoms, a medium slate blue in the guard bands, and deep navy used sparingly in the leaf tips and bud centers to give the drawing an outline. Green arrives as sage and a darker bottle green in the ribbons and foliage. Against those cool tones the flowers run rose, coral, salmon and a soft gold, with a true red used only in the smallest rosettes. It is a light, formal palette that suits ivory and beige rugs buyers working with pale walls or painted millwork.

Woven in Pakistan to Classical Standards

Pakistan's workshops have been knotting classical and European patterns for generations, and the better ones weave on a cotton foundation with well spun wool and a tight, regular knot, exactly what you see on the back of this piece. The close-up of the selvedge shows clean rows and crisp color changes, which is what allows curved Aubusson vine work to hold its line instead of going jagged. Calling this an Oriental rug rather than a Persian one is a matter of where it was tied, not of quality, and our guide on the difference between Persian and Oriental rugs explains where the line falls.