Antique Persian Bakshaish Room Size Carpet

A wool pile of symmetric knots on a wool foundation. The abrashed red field displays two identical columns, each composed of four palmettes rendered in a geometric Caucasian manner. The palmettes appear in straw, near-black, medium blue, and light green. The field also includes small octagons enclosing Caucasian-style palmettes, Memling guls, abstract leaves, and unusual double-headed animals. The medium blue border shows a strip-style rendition of the Caucasian “crab” design, while the two star-decorated minor borders are in pale flesh and yellow. An outer red-brown plain stripe frames the composition. This striking carpet dates to a period when rustic Heriz weavings were directed toward an export market already familiar with Caucasian scatters.