7.8 x 12 Antique Garrus Bidjar Carpet, Calyx Design, Kurdistan Province, Northwest Persia, Circa 1890
“Garrus” is a term sometimes used for early Bidjar carpets from northwest Persia’s Kurdistan province. The most famous design associated with this term is the Split Arabesque design but the design seen here, referred to as a Calyx design, also fits into the broader group of carpets, assuming it is an early enough (generally 19th century) example.
A Calyx is defined in the Oxford Dictionary as “The ring of small green leaves (called sepals) that protect a flower before it opens.”
The red field is decorated with large Calyx motifs in shades of yellow/camel and sky blue. Smaller Calyx motifs alternate with the larger ones.
The navy blue major border is of unusual composition, with flowerheads and leaves that almost have a Cloudband feel.
19th century Bidjar carpets tend to be long and narrow, after the classical paradigm where carpets were often about twice as long as they were wide. Unlike a Fereghan Sarouk carpet of this age, that might typically be about 9 feet by 12 feet, or a Heriz Serapi carpet of this era that might typically be about 10 feet wide by 12 feet in length, this Bidjar is less than 8 feet wide by 12 feet in length.
