1070 | PEACOCK Antique Persian Hamadan Rug with Salmon Pink & Peacock Blue | Circa 1920–1930 | 2.2 × 2.10

ABOUT THIS RUG

Apparently 1920s Persia was having a better time with color than we are.

Meet Peacock—a tiny antique Persian village rug with one of those palettes that makes absolutely no sense until you see it.

Then you can't stop looking at it.

The field is a spectacular saturated salmon pink. Floating across it is a huge geometric floral medallion rendered in peacock blue, turquoise, burgundy, mustard yellow, chocolate brown, ivory, and faded rose.

And we mean huge.

At only 2'2" × 2'10", there wasn't much real estate to work with, so the weaver apparently decided to use all of it.

The medallion stretches almost edge to edge, exploding outward into serrated leaves, enormous stylized flowers, angular vines and strange little botanical forms. Around it, layers of blue and floral borders contain the chaos just enough to keep everyone civilized.

Barely.

Origin: Persia (Iran), attributed to the Hamadan weaving region
Age: Antique, likely circa 1920–1930
Construction: Hand-knotted wool
Size: 2'2" × 2'10"
Colors: Salmon pink, peacock blue, turquoise, burgundy, mustard yellow, chocolate brown, ivory & faded rose
Design: Oversized geometric floral medallion with stylized botanical motifs and multiple floral borders

WHY WE LOVE IT

The color department has lost control.

Salmon pink and turquoise would have been enough.

But then somebody added peacock blue.

And mustard.

And burgundy.

And little hits of ivory.

And somehow, roughly a century later, the entire thing looks less dated than most rugs designed last Tuesday.

The blue is especially good.

It moves between dusty turquoise, blue-green and deeper teal throughout the rug, constantly playing against that warm pink field. Then mustard-yellow vines cut through the composition and give everything another jolt.

There is nothing timid happening here.

And because it was drawn at the loom rather than perfected on a screen, the whole composition has movement. Flowers change shape. Lines wander. Proportions shift. One side never quite agrees with the other.

That's not a defect. That's the autograph.

CONDITION

Peacock shows honest antique wear and an absolutely spectacular patina.

There is visible variation and wear to the pile, along with age-related irregularity at the ends and edges. Portions of the original fringe have been lost, and there are areas of lower pile consistent with generations of use.

The sides also appear to have received reinforcement at some point in the rug's life—another chapter in the story of a textile that was clearly considered worth keeping.

And through all of it?

Those colors survived.

The pink still punches.

The turquoise still glows.

The mustard still shows up uninvited.

Exactly as it should.

Please review all photographs carefully, as they are considered part of the condition description.

STYLING NOTES

At 2'2" × 2'10", Peacock is basically antique Persian punctuation.

You don't need an entire room for it.

You need one boring spot.

Beside a bed. In front of a sink. Under a little table. Powder room. Entry. Reading corner. In front of a console. Layered over a much larger neutral rug.

Or put it in an otherwise painfully sophisticated room and let it ruin everyone's composure.

Marble.

Plaster.

Linen.

Expensive chair.

Tiny pink Persian rug.

Now we're decorating.

FINAL WORD

It's less than three feet long.

It's roughly a century old.

It's pink, turquoise, mustard, burgundy and blue.

And somehow the person who wove it understood color better than most of Pinterest.

Peacock.

Small rug.

Absolutely enormous plumage.