CENTRAL ANATOLIA, CIRCA 1800 OR EARLIER

The design of this prayer rug is unusual in that it appears to display elements from two different weaving centers in central Anatolia. The elongated proportions and the elegant tulip panels above and below the central mihrab are characteristic of Ladik weavings, as is the deep indigo mihrab, while the intricate 'diamond tile' pattern border formed of red and ivory lozenges, and the intricate lozenge and flower guard stripes are more commonly associated with those from Mudjur, further east in the Kirsehir region. The tile pattern appears closely related to designs found in early 'Holbein' and the so-called 'Chequerboard' carpets. An extremely worn but near identical Anatolian prayer rug to the present lot is in the Museum of Applied Arts, Budapest, (F. Batari, Ottoman Turkish Carpets, Budapest, 1994, pl.159, p.81).