Antique Kazak | 187 x 151 cm | Nr. 9004

Geometric antique Kazak, rust red with border and diamonds

Origin	Kazakhstan
Dimensions	187 cm x 151 cm (= 2.82 m²)
Construction	hand-knotted
Material	Pile: wool (hand-spun, natural dyes) Weft & Warp: wool
knots per m²2	150.000
Pile height	3mm
Year of manufacture	1890
Colour	Rust red, yellow
Edition	one-of-a-kind piece

 

Origin

Kazak rugs (also spelled Kasak) belong to the group of Caucasian rugs. Rugs have been made in the Caucasus since the end of the 18th century. Their hallmark is the abstract geometric tribal patterning in primary colours. The geometric motifs — and, more rarely, floral ones — 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 antique Kazak is a collector's piece. It is around 130 years old, and that alone makes it a truly special piece. Antique rugs like this Kazak are as sought after as ever and fetch top prices at renowned auction houses.

 

Pattern

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

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.

In the pattern of this Kazak it is above all the diamonds that catch the eye. A diamond is a rhombus standing on one of its points, and in an Oriental rug its four equal sides can be serrated, outlined or set with hooks. The diamond is one of the oldest basic forms in the Oriental rug. In the Islamic world it carries a symbolic meaning: it stands for the immortality of the soul. That is why it appears so often as a filler motif.

The background of this Kazak is rust red. The border is worked in yellow and blue-grey.

 

Condition

You are not the first to take a liking to this Kazak. It had owners before you who valued and used it. Age has left the pile thin. Apart from that, this antique rug is extremely well preserved. It was hand-knotted around 1890. We cleaned it thoroughly and restored it with great care. Despite its age, it is therefore in very good condition.

 

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.