Old Kazak | 330 x 120 cm | Nr. 20063

Geometric old Kazak runner, beige with border

Origin	Russia
Dimensions	330 cm x 120 cm (= 3.96 m²)
Construction	hand-knotted
Material	Pile: wool (hand-spun, natural dyes) Weft & Warp: wool
knots per m²2	60.000
Pile height	4mm
Year of manufacture	1930
Colour	Beige
Edition	one-of-a-kind piece

Origin

Kazak (also spelled Kasak) rugs belong to the group of Caucasian rugs. Rugs have been made in the Caucasus since the end of the 18th century. Their hallmark is abstract geometric tribal patterns in primary colours. The geometric and, more rarely, floral motifs are typically rendered in intense, high-contrast colours. In the 19th century a considerable share of these rugs, produced mainly in villages, was exported to the West under Russian control. This old Kazak is around 90 years old and a real collector's piece.

Pattern

The abstract, geometric composition is what gives this Kazak its understated elegance. The pattern flatters the design of a room and never draws attention away from the furniture, the decoration or the architectural features. It settles beautifully into any setting and complements the furnishings of a room in a subtle way.

The decorated surround (border) forms a wonderful contrast to the centre and shapes the transition at the edge of the rug.

The repeating elements of this Kazak rug have no specific centre. The recurring repeat pattern feels calming without ever becoming dull. Rugs with a repeat pattern are also described as all-over designs.

The background of this Kazak is turquoise. Beige also dominates the overall impression. The border is worked in dark red, beige and dark brown.

Condition

This Kazak has had admirers before you. It was hand-knotted around 1930. It has been thoroughly cleaned and is in good but unrestored condition. The pile has grown quite thin over the years. The fringes & edges are in need of repair too. We haven't restored this Kazak because we feel it has a special presence just as it is. If you'd like us to, we'll gladly restore the rug for you, of course. Either way, this Kazak will give you pleasure for decades to come.

Material

The technique used to prepare the materials for the pile of this Kazak is more than 200 years old. The wool was dyed with natural dyes and spun by hand. Dyeing with natural or plant dyes is more complicated, more expensive and more time-consuming than dyeing with chemical colours. For a luminous red, for example, you need around one kilo of ground madder root as dyestuff per kilo of wool. For a strong yellow that is not too pale, you even need two kilograms of weld per kilo of wool. Spinning the wool is just as time-consuming and labour-intensive. What is more, fewer and fewer people still master spinning wool by hand.

But the effort is worth it: dyeing with natural colours lets the high-quality wool keep its natural lanolin content. Wool that has been naturally dyed and hand-spun creates fascinating, shimmering patterns. The charm of hand-spun wool, with its slight irregularities and natural shades, comes into its own as a contrast in modern interiors, but equally in rooms furnished in a more traditional or country-house style. The foundation (weft and warp threads) of this Kazak is made of new wool.