9'6" x 13'6" Persian Sarouk Rug | Red Field, Ivory Medallion | 1980s, Perfect Condition

Knotted in the 1980s and still carrying a full, even pile from edge to edge, this is one of the cleanest room-size Persian Sarouk rugs to come through our Freeport warehouse this season. The field is a saturated true red, the main border a wide ivory band, and the single lobed medallion at the center is drawn in cream and indigo rather than the heavier palettes you often see on pieces of this age. At 9'6" x 13'6" it sits squarely in the 10x14 Persian rugs range, which means a full sofa and chair group can stand on it with every leg on wool. Fringes are original and intact, the selvages are tight, and the back reads crisp and regular with no repairs. The rug ships with a certificate of authenticity.

Design and Motifs

The drawing follows the classic Sarouk formula: one lobed central medallion with a small pendant at each end, 4 corner spandrels, and a field that never goes quiet between them. Thin cream vine lines sweep across the red ground in long curves, carrying serrated palmettes, 8 petal rosettes, split leaves and small bud clusters, each one outlined in black so the motif reads cleanly against the red. The medallion itself is built in layers, a navy diamond core with a cross of rust and sage at its heart, surrounded by curling arabesques on an ivory ground. The corner spandrels are worked in navy and light blue, which makes the 4 corners of the field feel heavier and anchors the composition. The main border runs an ivory ground with alternating palmettes and big red rosettes, framed on both sides by a light blue guard stripe of small checkered panels and a narrow rosette minor border. It is a formal, balanced layout drawn with enough variation in the floral heads to keep your eye moving.

A Deep Red Field with Ivory, Navy and Soft Gold

The field red is the kind of clear, slightly cool madder-toned red that Sarouk weavers built their reputation on, and in the close-up photographs you can see it shift between a deeper burgundy in the pile shadow and a bright cherry tone where the light catches the tips. Against it sit three families of color: ivory and soft gold in the medallion, spandrel outlines and main border; navy blue and a lighter sky blue in the palmettes, guard stripes and corner panels; and small hits of rust, coral and pale pink in the flower heads. Black is used sparingly, only as an outline, which is what keeps the pattern sharp rather than muddy. The ivory border has aged to a warm beige with a faint gold cast, a natural mellowing that softens the contrast with the red and tells you the wool and the dyes are honest. Overall the rug is a strong red statement piece, not a muted one, and it will pull warm tones out of wood floors and leather.

Sarouk Weaving and Quality

Sarouk is a weaving village north of Arak in central Persia, and the name covers a whole group of workshops in the surrounding district that have supplied the American market for well over a century. Sarouk weavers work the Persian knot on a cotton foundation, pack the wefts hard and leave a thick, springy pile, which is why these rugs are known for taking decades of traffic in dining rooms and entry halls without going thin. This piece shows exactly that build: a heavy handle, a dense back, straight sides and a pile with real body under the hand. The wool is local and lanolin rich, so the surface has a quiet sheen rather than a dry matte look. Forty-odd years on it has no wear spots, no color run and no restoration, which for a 9'6" x 13'6" room-size piece of this period is uncommon.