A Luri Rug

A Luri Rug, Persia, late 19th C. A very rare and unusual rug, probably woven by the Persian Lurs from the Veramin area. Beautiful fleecy mountain wool, skilfully composed with a checkerboard drawing in a limited palette of colours, primarily including shades of red, blue and undyed white wool. Some may suggest this to be a Bakhtiari weaving, as suggested by the classic panel design favored by that tribe. Each of the twenty four rectangular panels is filled with a unique set of icons formed with smaller squares, some possibly representing ancient board games. The major border continues with the geometric theme, including rectangles filled with compressed or flattened crab-like icongraphy. 7 ft 11 in by 5 ft 5 in