WEST ANATOLIA, CIRCA 1800

This little rug has features which can be found in the so-called "yellow-ground group" of later Konya rugs which were "discovered" by F.R. Martin, the Swedish dealer and historian, in 1902 in the Alaeddin Mosque in Konya (Ralph Kaffel, "Heart & Soul", Hali, no.128, May-June 2003, p.91). Woven for private use and not for export, these rugs with a considerable amount of yellow in the field retain a very individual, archaic design reduced to a limited range of geometric motifs such as octagons or stars usually arranged in rows or a column. The central diamond-shaped medallion with implied corner spandrels found in the present lot is rare (op. cit., p.95). Yellow ground Konya rugs are generally dated before or around 1800 which is consistent with the age of our rug.