Hereke in pure silk | 97 x 66 cm | Nr. Z-2673

Floral Hereke in pure silk, turquoise with border

Origin	Turkey
Dimensions	97 cm x 66 cm (= 0.6402 m²)
Construction	hand-knotted
Material	Pile: pure silk Weft & Warp: pure silk
knots per m²2	640.000
Pile height	3mm
Year of manufacture	1980
Colour	Turquoise, dark red
Edition	one-of-a-kind piece

Origin

Very valuable silk rugs come from the Turkish town of Hereke. The tradition was fostered by the art-loving Sultan Abd-ul-Medjid (reigned 1839 - 1861). In 1844 he had the court workshops moved back from Cairo to Hereke. Hand-knotted Hereke silk rugs are among the finest rugs in the world and are knotted at densities of up to 6 million knots per m². Thanks to the knotting technique, incidentally, the pattern is just as clearly visible on the back as it is on the front. At renowned art auction houses, antique Turkish rugs fetch top prices.

Typical motifs on Hereke rugs are flowers, branches and leaves, as well as birds, the tree of life and the so-called Mehrab or Mihrab pattern, a prayer niche shown together with oil lamps. Alongside traditional motifs and typically Ottoman or Turkish patterns, Hereke silk rugs are today also knotted with more modern designs suited to contemporary taste. Typical colours for Hereke silk rugs are a deep dark blue, a radiant red, a lively green, a luminous yellow and a range of natural tones in every shade.

Pattern

The edge of the rug is framed by a decorative border. The border forms a beautiful contrast with the centre.

The lavish floral motifs of this Hereke are elegant and full of variety. The graceful plant symbols, depicting blossoms, leaves and branches, are artfully intertwined.

This Hereke is adorned with the so-called Mehrab or Mihrab motif. Mehrab is the name for the Islamic prayer niche in mosques, which marks the qibla, the direction of prayer towards Mecca. Rugs with the Mehrab motif are traditionally used by Muslims for prayer and are therefore especially treasured.

The background of this Hereke is turquoise. The border is worked in gold beige and dark red.

Material

The silk of this Hereke's pile makes the colours of the pattern glow in ever-changing facets, depending on how the light falls. It turns this Hereke into a true jewel and creates an atmosphere in the room that is cosy and at the same time highly elegant and refined. Silk is obtained by hand from the cocoons of the silkworm. Because the individual silk filaments are extremely long, very fine yarns can be spun that are light in weight yet still tear-resistant. Fine yarn allows smaller knots to be tied and therefore more intricate patterns to be created. That is why the finest rugs in the world are hand-knotted from pure silk. In this Hereke even the foundation is made of pure silk. Thanks to the thin but hard-wearing material of the weft and warp threads, a particularly fine knotting and therefore a particularly fine pattern are possible.