Kirman carpet (cotton warp and weft, wool pile), Southeast P - Lot 237

Kirman carpet (cotton warp and weft, wool pile), Southeast Persia, circa 1930-1950 255 x 170 cm The carpet is decorated with a large vase, with scrolls of flowers and nesting birds, surrounded by two phoenixes entwined by a snake on an ivory background and a navy blue background with floral decoration. The main ivory border with polychrome floral decoration and birds is framed by numerous counter-borders. The city of Kirman has an isolated position, which prevented it from playing an important role in the Sassanid era but spared it from being pillaged by the Mongols. Its name, given in 928, means "place of war". Carpet weaving was encouraged during the Sefavid period, but was interrupted at the fall of the dynasty. It was not resumed until the 19th century and the offices of European carpet merchants gradually opened there. Around 1920, the city opened to the American market. The wool of these carpets, which comes from neighboring towns and sometimes from Khorassan, is soft and white and was hand-twisted until 1950. Kirman is also known for its wide variety of hues, with fifteen to thirty different shades. Kirman rugs are often decorated with intricate floral patterns. Bibliography : Sabahi, T. Splendors of the carpets of the East. Ed. Atlas, Paris, 1987, p. 165 to 169