TURKEY, CIRCA 1920

The knot count measures approximately 10V x 9H per cm.sq.

In Rugs and Carpets of the World, Ian Bennet attributes this rug to the work of Abraham Toussounian. The structure of the present example, however, differs considerably from examples of the 'Toussounian' group, and it is more likely to have been produced by an unidentified weaver in Istanbul around the same time that Hagop and Zareh were working.

Many features of the cartoon, and the overall arrangement of motifs, resemble the upper half of the Poldi-Pezzoli carpet in Milan, albeit with some minor differences: the two peris below the vase on the classical carpet are replaced on this example by grey ibexes. An Istanbul rug with a similar composition, though less fine and incorporating a narrower range of colours, is in the Arkas Collection, published Kumkapi rugs from the Arkas collection, Izmir, 2017, no.26, pp.82-3.