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Antique Bakhtiari, Persia, late nineteenth century. Although antique Bakhtiari carpets represent a village or tribal rug weaving tradition, some, like this splendid example, draw upon the sophisticated repertoire of urban Persian carpet design. In the field a series of elaborate flowering palmettes in shades of red, green, and blue repeat across a soft ivory ground, while a trellis of stylized branches and curling leaves unifies the various palmettes as a staggered allover design. A zig-zag vinescroll rosette border on soft blue surrounds the field, flanked by minor vinescroll borders as an added framing effect. Here the angular abstract geometry of village weaving nicely balances the suave complexity of the urban floral ornamental elements.
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