Story

There's a lot going. And it's all fun.
The field in essence has a 𝙕𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞 𝙎𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙖𝙣 theme with its staggered rows of flowering vases. This was a royal Qajar style that quickly became a marker of class and elegance. However, and most unusually, we see clearly defined figural representations all around.

In the middle there is a young bride escorted by two gentlemen whom we assume to be her brothers, given they are equally young and similar in dress and facial features. The conclusion is that this is a dowry rug, commissioned for the happy occasion of her wedding. Alongside this grouping of three figures are two pairs of lions 🦁 , four in total, placed there for protection. The use of a Lion by nomadic weavers was never by chance because it remains one their most symbolic motifs. Above and below the lions, we see 4 ladies in waiting. Their dress code and general comportment, with raised hands, suggest they are of a lower social standing than the relatively princelier bride in the middle.

At the top we have an inscription saying 𝙁𝙖𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙮𝙚𝙨𝙝 𝙎𝙖𝙮𝙮𝙚𝙙 333: commissioned by the Sayyed 333. The title indicates a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, a holy bloodline held in very high regard by tribes folk. His first name is not indicated but numerologically is equivalent to 333. He must be most likely the father of the bride, the Steve Martin of southern Persia. We also see a date, 1333 Hijri, right at the end of the First World War.

All in all, a unique work of Islamic Art and ethnographic folk art. This should be in a museum.

Perfectly preserved. End kilim with lovingly tasseled and braided fringes.