Carpet. FERRAHAN (cotton warp and weft, wool pile), central - Lot 343

Carpet. FERRAHAN (cotton warp and weft, wool pile), central Persia, circa 1930-1970 542 x 346 cm The rug is embellished with the Herati motif on a red background. This motif consists of a lozenge of curved stems, enclosing a rosette and topped by a palmette at each apex, repeated ad infinitum, with four falciform leaves next to each other. This design adorned Herat carpets (to which it owes its name). The main ivory border with geometric motifs is framed by numerous counter-borders with multicolored flowers. "North of Sultanabad lies the densely populated Farahan region, with its many villages whose main resource is carpet weaving....). Carpets are appreciated for their sobriety and the elegance of their design, which is most often composed of simple decorative elements. (...) The vintage velvet of Ferrahan or Farahan carpets is often corroded due to the use of a copper-based green dye. The decoration, which derives from Persian tradition, is made up of tiny motifs that are repeated in full field. The most frequent motif is the herati. Alongside the herati, motifs such as boteh, mina-khani, gol farangh and mustefi are frequently reproduced. Many carpets also feature medallion designs. They reflect the decorative sobriety of the region's carpets, and the medallion composition is treated in a balanced manner. The field is usually decorated only at the spandrels or along the edges to highlight the medallions, executed with intricate floral motifs and often surrounded by a jagged outline. Sometimes, the field is elaborately decorated with herati motifs or rows of boteh. A series of barely sketched medallions, cut by the border, appear on some models, above and below the central medallion, giving the impression that the weaver wanted to depict a single medallion completely0 The borders, particularly the central one, take on importance through their size and the refined decoration of the motifs." Wear and old restorations.