79682 Antique Persian Sultanabad Rug, 10'09 x 15'01.
The Quiet Garden: A Late 19th Century Persian Sultanabad Masterpiece of Elegance
This hand-knotted wool antique Persian Sultanabad rug, woven in the late 19th century, is a stunning expression of courtly Persian design, created during the golden era of Sultanabad weaving. Celebrated for their grand scale and cultivated elegance, Sultanabad carpets of this period were commissioned for distinguished residences and cosmopolitan interiors across Persia and Europe. Here, the luminous ivory-beige field offers a refined sense of serenity, creating an atmosphere of quiet grandeur and effortless prestige. Its soft ground allows every iconic motif to breathe, lending the exceptional composition an airy sophistication that feels both stately and deeply inviting.
The field is orchestrated as a magnificent allover garden of Shah Abbas palmettes, rosettes, boteh motifs, lotus blossoms, peonies, and flowing arabesque vines. Each element is steeped in symbolic meaning. The Shah Abbas palmettes, derived from the Safavid court tradition, signify abundance, cultivated beauty, and noble patronage. Interspersed among them, lotus blossoms speak to rebirth, transcendence, and immortality, while the peony—long associated with honor, prosperity, and imperial grace—introduces a regal floral richness. The boteh motifs, elegantly scattered throughout the horizon, represent the eternal flame, the sprouting seed, and the continuity of life itself, offering a poetic symbol of renewal and cosmic order.
Woven between these larger floral devices are delicate rosettes and arabesque vines, their graceful movement evoking the enclosed Persian Garden of Paradise. The rosettes suggest celestial harmony and completeness, while the arabesques flow like living tendrils, symbolizing the endless cycle of regeneration and divine creation. This uninterrupted expanse creates the sensation of strolling through an eternal garden in bloom—an artistic metaphor treasured in Persian decorative arts. The pale ground heightens the contrast of terra cotta, sky blue, soft rose, and muted gold accents, creating a refined visual rhythm that rewards prolonged viewing.
Encircling the composition is an elegant floral rosette border, a distinguished frame that echoes the sense of cultivated abundance. The repeating rosettes convey wholeness, balance, and enduring fortune, while the double floral guard borders lend architectural precision and layered refinement. Together they create a stately enclosure reminiscent of a walled palace garden. This extraordinary masterpiece of remarkable poise—ideally suited for interiors shaped by English country house elegance, French Provincial sophistication, neoclassical restraint, or contemporary spaces seeking heritage and serene luxury. It is an exquisite work of art that offers not merely beauty, but an atmosphere of inherited distinction and timeless grace.
- Abrash.
- Hand knotted wool.
- Made in Iran.
- Measures: 10'09 x 15'01.
- Pile Height: 0.12 of an inch.
- Date: 1890's. Late 19th Century.
