Small Kurdish Kazak, second half of 19th c. Small Kurdish Kazak, second half of 19th c.Click on image to view at larger size
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The design is dominated by three borders with stars (filled quartered stars and a border of linear stars in the middle) where interestingly, the star design in the inmost border switches to blossoms in the lower part. This border system surrounds one of the moist charmingly improvised madder-red fields I have seen in any rug, with free-floating stars resonating those of the borders, some rectangles, small blossoms, s-shapes and a row of three motifs at the top that for lack of another term I would label 'ladder motifs'.
I am a novice in the attribution of Caucasian rugs, so I just reproduce what Ian Bennett has to say about this rug (note that Bennett's condition description is no longer true as side and corners have since been restored—this is what the rug looked like before restoration):
An attractive and unusual Kazak rug, South Caucasus, second half 19th century, 3ft.8in. x 2ft.0in. (112 x 86 cm). Overall even wear tan brown inner border uhevenly corroded, right edge a little ragged with one or two small areas of minor damage, i.e. lower corner. The design of this charming rug, with its rich palette (including pale aubergine), is unusual; it has an all wool foundation and the red wefts suggest a possible Kurdish origin.
The rug measures 3ft.8in. x 2ft.0in. (112 x 86 cm). Off white to tan woolen warps, Z3S, thick and strongly twisted, no warp depression. Brick-red and brownish red woolen wefts, mostly three shots, but the number varies from two to four. Coarsely wovenn, the knot count is v.19/dm x h.27/dm = 51,300 kpsm (or, for the inch, v.5 x h.7 = ca. 35 kpsi). Selvages are flat, four warps, pairs of two wrapped in brick red wool (right side some of it restored). Ends are professionally secured.
This rug has beautiful organic dyes throughout: a very clear yellow, sky blue, brick madder red, off-white, a dark brown (somewhat corroded), a light aubergine, and a wonderful mottled medium green, with intact yellow components—this piece has been well dyed.
Good low pile of beautifully glossy wool, slightly higher towards the sides and ends, with some corrosion of the tan brown in the inner border. The lower corners and the right side have minimal restoration, some limited repiling if the brown ground in the lower part of the inner border (see detailo images. The ends have been secured, right selbvage partly rewrapped. The restoration has been carried our by Walter Brew of Thunderstrand.
