Kazak Rugs: Antique Kazak Carpet


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Antique Kazak Carpet

In Caucasian Rugs COLOR is the Critical Factor. This Rug has Very Good COLOR. This Rug has excellent drawing and is well spaced. This is a very good very collectable antique Kazak.

One day I was studying the translation of the "Yuan chao pi-shih" by the late Francis Woodman Cleaves, Professor Emeritus of Far Eastern Languages at Harvard University. Cleaves did a masterful job but in section 64 I realized Cleaves mistranslated Kazak. He translates it to mean Kirghiz but that does not fit the paragraph. In a discussion of a young woman leaving her family to marry into a new tribe it does not fit for her to ride a Kirghiz cart because the Kirghiz have nothing to do with the story. The key is that the girl is leaving her clan. Kazak refers to the ritual of packing ones cart and leaving the authority of ones people. This fit with my studies that indicated that when people left the Horde they were called Kazak. This was the case in the Caucasus where Kazaks broke away from the authority of the IL-Khanid and then maintained their independence through out the years against the Turks and the Persians. So in the Caucasus when we say Kazak we are referring to people whose ancestors were Mongols but broke away.

Kazak Rug. Caucasus, 19th Century. 4 foot 8 inch, by 8 foot 4 inch.

Structure: Symmetrical. 7 knots per horizontal inch and 6 knots per vertical inch. 42 per square inch (650 per square decimeter).

Yarn Spin: Z.

Warp: 2 ply wool undyed ivory wool.

Weft: 2 shots 2 ply dark brown wool.

Pile: 2 Wool singles.

Ends: Top 1 inch skirt bottom warp fringe.

Selvages: Not original.

Further Notes: Some old repairs and reweaves. Full Intact rug, no missing borders, no holes no slits no structural problems etc...

This rug is free from the cookie cutter rigidity that makes many Caucasians rather boring. Some rugs came from the people and retain a spontaneity that the "Kustar" rugs lacked. Kustar refers to a Russian Government program to boost exports by encouraging rug production. The problem was that they encouraged people to abandon their ancient designs and weave copies of Government approved designs.

A Note on Condition:

This condition rug is suitable floor use. It is a very collectable piece and I would certainly not put it in a high traffic area. But the condition of this piece is very good.

For Further Reading:

Guide to Rugs & Books

La Miniature En Orient

JBOC's Notes on the Bible

Southwest Asia Time Line

Thanks and best wishes,

J. Barry O'Connell Jr.

Persian Rugs the O'Connell Guides