Weaver’s Joke?

[Chris Schwimer Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Chris Schwimer]

Hi all. Some question from a rug newbie. According to ChatGPT, “Your rug is a genuine early-20th-century NW Persian Heriz / Bakhshaish village rug.”

is this correct? And… what’s with that area of bright fibers. Is that a weaver’s joke/signature, or maybe a kid in the weaver’s house joking around? A cat face?

Thanks,
Chris

[Chuck Wagner Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Chuck Wagner]

Hi Chris, and welcome,

That looks like a late 19th/early 20th century Bidjar to me. I think the color is whimsical; one often finds Baluch goods with a few knots of colorful silk in them as well - a spare resource that adds some flair to an otherwise ordinary piece.

Regards
Chuck Wagner

[Joseph R. Putnak Member Find all posts View Profile Close Joseph R. Putnak]

Hi, Chris. I agree with Chuck. I don’t place much stock in AI-assisted image searches. For the most part they seem biased in favor of commercial sites where attributions are more often wrong than not. Although rugs like yours with the so-called “Herati” field design and “turtle” main border are common all over Iran your rug is most likely from a village in the West or West-Central part of the country, possibly Bijar, made in the first half of the twentieth century. Judging from the rather poorly composed border it appears to be a cottage industry weaving rather than a more formal workshop piece, which would have been woven more precisely, often using a cartoon as a guide. Unfortunately, the wool used to make the rug was not well dyed (or perhaps the colors faded from washing with some sort of chemical after manufacture) so that the brightly colored silk(?) areas really stand out.

Joseph

[Joe Lawrence Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Joe Lawrence]

There is also a possibility this was produced by a weaver in training. For a craft that took years to produce quality pieces, this may be the case. You have to start somewhere. There is a lot going on in this piece with numerous motifs. For me, it wouldn’t even make the cottage industry. It’s too crude. But, don’t rule out the beauty of it. Someone work long and hard to make this. All signs for me point to a beginner weaver.
The bright colored motifs are throwing me off. They are not consistent with the fading of the rest of the rug. Also unusual for is what appears to be a date hidden in the rug. I reversed the image and came up with 1731 which doesn’t work then reversed it again thinking the weaver wove the 3 backwards and came up with 1371 which would translate to our date of 1951. Of course, this is speculation.

[Chris Schwimer Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Chris Schwimer]

Wow, that’s some great insight. Thanks for taking the time to contribute.