3.9 x 10.2 Antique Serab Rug, Northwest Persia, Circa 1900
This is a distinctive antique Serab runner rug that we now believe is older than what we originally thought. It has both wool warps and wefts, generally a sign that a rug is older than 1920s or 1930s examples that might have cotton warps. It has thick, fluffy pile and a pliable handle. The palette is lighter than is typical, with an ivory field that is decorated with two mid blue medallions and camel color zig zag stripes. The spacing of the motifs is very well done, including abstract flowers in the field toward each end and small stylized animals in the field. The light green and soft red Reciprocal Trefoil outer border is a nice feature.
What we noticed recently is a pale lavender color visible on the back of the rug that has faded on the face. This might be an early synthetic color called “fuchsine” and a notable aspect regarding fuchsine is that weavers discontinued using it circa 1900. In that case, the rug is older than the circa 1925 that we originally thought and we have amended the date on this post to reflect that.
Please, call Helen or Douglas at (781) 205-9817 for price or other information.
