19th Century Russian Karabagh Hand Knotted Wool Carpet

A late 19th century antique Russian Karabagh carpet, the midnight blue field with small angular floral vinery and palmettes dominated by two vertical tan zigzag bands within an abrashed sky blue and celadon green border with abstract botehs.

The division of Azerbaijani-styled Karabagh antique caucasian rugs was based not on patterns, but "carpetsschools" which dictated characteristic traits of each piece. There are four schools: Guba-Shirvan set in Guba, Shirvan region and Baku, Ganje-Kazakh, in Ganje town and Kazakh region, Karabagh based in centers in Shusha and, maybe surprisingly for some, Tabriz with centers in Tabriz and Ardebil in South (Iranian) Azerbaijan.

Antique oriental rugs for sale from each school were woven in a different fashion and sometimes had very little or even nothing in common. Those differences were influenced by the fact that some of those schools developed in mountainous areas where need for thicker and warmer Karabagh runner carpets was greater and some in lowlands which resulted in more decorative patterns and thinner piles, as people did not need as much protection from the cold. Moreover each village has its own original design and ornaments and had specific characterization which distinguished them from the others.