SOUTH PERSIA, EARLY 19TH CENTURY

A carpet very similar in size, colour and design to the present lot but with a missing outer stripe was sold in these Rooms 6 April 2006, lot 70. Both belong to a small number of Qashqai carpets whose delicately drawn design has been woven by tribes with fantastic soft wool dyed in a wide range of wonderful bright colours. A clearly later and less refined rug is dated to 1865 (James Opie, Tribal Rugs of Southern Persia, Oregon, 1981, pp.83-83). A smaller further example on white ground with a smaller border than our carpet is dated 1270AH 1853AD (Hadi Maktabi, "lost & found", Hali, no.153, autumn 2007, pp.78-79). A third much smaller one again with a small border and white ground is in the M.H. de Young Museum San Francisco (Hali, 25, January 1985, pl.4, p.18) and can be dated even to the early nineteenth century with help of the signature that it bears. This demonstrates a consistent production in the first half of the nineteenth century. Ours, with its very pure drawing, similar to the young example, and large border was probably made in the earlier part of this time period.