Old Kelim | 198 x 95 cm | Nr. 17676

Geometric old Kelim runner, dark blue with panel pattern and border

Origin	Turkey
Dimensions	198 cm x 95 cm (= 1.88 m²)
Construction	hand-woven
Material	Weft (pile): wool Warp: wool
Pile height	3mm
Year of manufacture	1920
Colour	Dark blue, Beige
Edition	one-of-a-kind piece

Origin

Bright colours and simple, geometric patterns – that is what makes Kelims loved the world over. Kelims (also Kilim, Qilim) were traditionally made only for the weavers' own use. Nomads and farmers used, and still use, their Kelims as rugs on the floor, but also as tent or wall hangings, blankets, cushions or bags. Because Kelims were constant companions in everyday life, their patterns – however naive they may look – always carry a personal message and hold meaning for the weavers and their families.

In Europe, Kelims from Turkey, the Caucasus region, Iran, Afghanistan and the Turkmen cultural area are especially well known and loved. In fact, rugs are hand-woven in every country where rugs are knotted. This old Kelim is around 100 years old and a real collector's piece.

Pattern

The so-called panel pattern of this Kelim recalls a lushly planted garden with geometrically ordered beds, each one framed in its own right. This layout is so characteristic that in German panel-pattern rugs are also called garden rugs. The individual compartments in this Kelim's pattern each show different motifs, yet follow a strictly symmetrical, rectangular arrangement.

There is a reason for this: large parts of Persia and many other regions of the Middle and Near East are desert- or steppe-like arid areas, where so-called irrigation horticulture is widely practised. Water is channelled to the beds through small irrigation canals. The panel pattern renders this irrigation system in heavily simplified form. Because of the dryness in these regions, blooming and verdant gardens are also something quite special. The panel pattern therefore probably goes back to the wish to bring a little garden – and with it a small paradise – into the home. In the Koran the term garden, as the earthly counterpart to paradise – a word of Old Persian origin, incidentally – appears very frequently.

The overall impression is dominated by dark blue and beige. The border is worked in light red and dark blue.

Condition

You aren't the first to take a liking to this Kelim. It has had owners before you who valued it and used it. It was hand-woven around 1920. It has been thoroughly cleaned and is in good, though only partly restored, condition. Only the fringes of the rug are slightly damaged in places. On one side, parts of the border are missing. We haven't fully restored this Kelim, because we think it has a special presence just as it is. If that's what you'd like, we'll gladly carry on restoring the rug for you. We can bring almost any rug back to near-perfect condition.

Material

Kelims are hand-woven and consist only of warp and weft threads, so they have no thick pile standing upright. Kelims show the same pattern on both sides and can therefore be used either way up. The pattern is created by the coloured weft threads woven into the warp threads. For every new colour, a new thread has to be used in each row. The thread ends are worked in as the weaving goes along.

The weft threads of this Kelim rug are made of hand-spun sheep's wool dyed with plant dyes. Before the rug was woven, the sheep were first shorn and the wool was then cleaned, combed and finally spun. After spinning, the wool for Kelim rugs is dyed with natural colours in an elaborate process. Because of this traditional method, the pile of Kelim rugs feels dry and slightly furry. The warp threads of this Kelim are made of wool.