{"product_id":"1076-saffron-antique-southwest-persian-qashqai-luri-tribal-rug-circa-1900-1920-2-4-2-10","title":"1076 | SAFFRON Antique Southwest Persian Qashqai\/Luri Tribal Rug | Circa 1900–1920 | 2.7 × 2.9","description":"\u003ch3\u003eABOUT THIS RUG\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eApparently neutrals weren't trending in the Zagros Mountains.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMeet \u003cstrong\u003eSaffron\u003c\/strong\u003e—a tiny antique Southwest Persian tribal rug with three enormous diamond medallions and a color palette that has absolutely no interest in behaving its age.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThree stacked lozenges consume almost the entire field, rendered in smoky aubergine, faded lavender, chocolate, ivory, olive and black against a beautifully mellowed terracotta ground.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThen you hit the border.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSaffron yellow.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNot beige pretending to be yellow. Not \"warm camel.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eActual, glorious, slightly unhinged mustard-saffron running around the perimeter in an angular geometric meander, punctuated by little flashes of scarlet red.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt's spectacular.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe three medallions are packed with hooked geometric forms and outlined in tiny ivory-and-brown checkerboard details. Smaller hooked motifs squeeze into the terracotta spaces between them, creating a composition that feels primitive, architectural and completely handmade.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBecause it was.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOrigin:\u003c\/strong\u003e Southwest Persia (Iran), attributed to Qashqai\/Luri tribal weaving of the Fars\/Zagros region\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAge:\u003c\/strong\u003e Antique, likely circa 1900–1920\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConstruction:\u003c\/strong\u003e Hand-knotted wool\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSize:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2'7\" × 2'9\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eColors:\u003c\/strong\u003e Terracotta, saffron yellow, smoky aubergine, faded lavender, olive green, chocolate brown, ivory \u0026amp; scarlet\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDesign:\u003c\/strong\u003e Three stacked geometric lozenge medallions with hooked tribal motifs and contrasting saffron border\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWHY WE LOVE IT\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe color combination is completely unexpected.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTerracotta and aubergine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLavender and olive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChocolate and ivory.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThen that border comes marching around the outside in full-blown saffron yellow.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd because the rug has had roughly a century to mellow, none of it feels loud anymore.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt feels expensive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLook closely and the color gets even better. The purple isn't one purple. It moves from deep aubergine into smoky violet and faded lavender. The terracotta shifts across the field. Olive appears almost accidentally. Tiny red details jump out of the yellow border.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat's \u003cstrong\u003eabrash\u003c\/strong\u003e—the beautiful variation that occurs when hand-dyed wool from different dye lots ages differently across a rug.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt's one of the things new rugs desperately try to imitate.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis one didn't have to try.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eCONDITION\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSaffron is a genuinely antique tribal rug showing substantial, beautiful evidence of age.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere is significant pile wear throughout, including areas where the foundation is exposed, particularly through portions of the medallions and field. The ends and edges show age-related irregularity, wear and historic repair and\/or reinforcement.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe rug also displays pronounced variation in pile height and color that contributes enormously to its timeworn appearance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd in this case, the wear does something wonderful:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIt reveals more color.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs the pile moves between fuller and more worn areas, aubergine becomes lavender, terracotta softens toward dusty rose, and the entire surface develops the depth of an old textile rather than a flat floor covering.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePlease review all photographs carefully, as they are considered part of the condition description.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eSTYLING NOTES\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt \u003cstrong\u003e2'4\" × 2'10\"\u003c\/strong\u003e, Saffron is basically an antique Persian color bomb requiring less than seven square feet of commitment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBeside a bed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePowder room.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eUnder a little table.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn front of a console.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLayered over a giant neutral rug.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOr hang it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBecause three enormous tribal diamonds in terracotta, purple and saffron against a plaster wall sound considerably more interesting than whatever framed print you were considering.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOur preference?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePut it somewhere painfully sophisticated.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTravertine. Walnut. Linen. Stainless steel.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThen add the tiny hundred-year-old tribal rug with the yellow border.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNow the room has a point of view.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eFINAL WORD\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA century ago, somebody decided terracotta needed purple.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePurple needed olive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd the whole thing needed a saffron-yellow border.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe don't know her name.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut we'd like to formally recognize that she absolutely nailed it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e#1076 — Saffron.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne hundred years later.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eStill the best-dressed thing in the room.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rug Snob","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50172513222904,"sku":null,"price":1196.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0712\/5978\/3416\/files\/1076.1.jpg?v=1786913870","url":"https:\/\/www.rugsnob.com\/products\/1076-saffron-antique-southwest-persian-qashqai-luri-tribal-rug-circa-1900-1920-2-4-2-10","provider":"RUGSNOB","version":"1.0","type":"link"}