Oversized Antique Persian Bakhtiari Floral Handwoven Wool Rug

An early 20th century antique Persian Bakhtiari carpet, the striated chocolate brown and blue field with an overall pattern of stepped leaf-formed ivory medallions with lush floral bouquets separated by beige leaf forms within a beige floral cartouche border.

Although originally woven by nomadic peoples, the most authentic Bakhtiari are made by settled communities in west central Iran southwest of Isfahan, Chahar Mahaal and Bakhtiari and parts of the provinces of Isfahan, Lorestan, and eastern Khuzestan, most notably in the town of Shahr-Kurd. Persian rugs are based on a cotton foundation with a woolen weft, usually taken from the flocks of the producing tribe. This leads to an interesting diversity of Bakhtiari large round area rugs which differ depending on the type of each community’s wool. The wool comes in various degrees of gloss, from dull to extremely shiny, and the resultant pile is trimmed medium to high to provide the most pleasing and tender carpets. The finest Persian Bakhtiari beautiful rugs are distinguished by an extremely high knot density and known as ‘Bibibaff’.