NORTH EAST PERSIA, EARLY 19TH CENTURY

This is one of a small number of similar carpets which include nasta'liq couplets woven into the harshang pattern field. One was published by Arthur Upham Pope (A Survey of Persian Art, Oxford, 1938, pl.1272A). A second example was in the Bernheimer Family Collection of Carpets sold in these Rooms 14 February 1996, lot 60. The example in Pope appears to be dated 1281/1864-5, while the Bernheimer example was dated 1218/1813-14. The latter date seems the more probable for the group.