824. a seemly old Afghan Ersari carpet

824. Provenance: Heriz, Northwest Persia/Persian Azerbaijan

Size: 330 x 57 cm

Age: Circa 1940

Condition: Generally very good, with just one minor re-weave. Minor patches of wear on the rear, hence the heavy discount.

Notes:  A classic Afghan Ersari fil pai or 'elephant foot', refering to the oversized Turkoman guls or medallions. These developed differently from their Turkomen brethren who remained to the west and north of them, under increasing Russian influence, and commercialization of their woven goods. As the demand for increasinly finely woven rugs grew, so the gul shapes tended to 'flatten', whereas in Afghanistan the more isolated Ersari displayed an oppopsite trend - a broadening and enlarging of the guls. Such pieces continue to be woven in Afghanistan, but they tend not to have the pleasing, subtle madder-rich dyes and soft oily wool. Some are as red as pillar boxes and just as stiff! This piece has 18 guls and a pleasing abrush (colour variation caused by changes in absorpancy of hand-spun wool or in dye batch), running through the middle. This is a wonderfully glossy, shimmering piece - the photo in no way does it justice!