19th Century Persian Tabriz Handwoven Wool Rug

A late 19th century Tabriz Persian rug, the midnight field with a bold trellis overall of angular vines, abstract palmettes and split leaves within a narrow red palmette border.

Tabriz, the capital of the northwestern Iranian province of Azerbaijan, has for centuries enjoyed a great reputation as a center of Persian culture. Under the benign patronage of Shah Abbas the Great (1587-1629), artists and artisans designed illuminated manuscripts, embroidered silks, painted miniatures and fabricated metal work in the Safavid style. It was in this fertile, creative atmosphere that the weavers of Antique Persian rugs for the Court were inspired to reach for new artistic heights and created exceptional antique oriental rugs and carpets. The art of carpet-weaving was handed down from generation to generation and considered a family treasure, allowing artists to ply a respected trade.

A specialist rug dealer in oriental and western large area rugs and carpets, Doris Leslie Blau’s impressive collection of antique rugs include rare Turkish, Persian and Indian masterpieces, many of which date back to the Medieval Age.