A 'Petag' Tabriz carpet, Northwest Persia, circa 1920

UK: Greenford Park Warehouse

Auction Closed

October 27, 03:41 PM GMT

Estimate

15,000 - 20,000 GBP

Lot Details

Description

with the 'Petag' cintamani motif in top right hand corner; with the 'Emperors' Carpet' design,

approximately 545 by 322cm.

Please note that there is a ban on the importation into the United States of Iranian-origin rugs. Clients should enquire with the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) regarding import requirements before placing a bid. There may also be restrictions on the import of property of Iranian origin into some or all member countries of the Gulf Co-Operation Council. Any buyers planning to import property of Iranian origin into any of these countries should satisfy themselves of the relevant import regime. Sotheby's will not assist buyers with the shipment of such items to the USA or to countries of the Gulf Co-Operation Council. In addition, Fedex and US courier services will no longer carry Iranian-origin goods to any location. Any shipment services would need to be provided by a Fine Art shipping company.

The German firm Persische Teppich-Gesellschaft (PETAG) was founded in Berlin in 1911 by Heinrich Jacoby (1889-1964). At his initiative, a large workshop was opened in Tabriz to weave carpets that maintained traditional quality, against the perceived decline resulting from the mass commercialisation of weaving as a result of Western demand. Using lustrous wool, often coloured with vegetable dyes, the company revived the art of weaving using old and elegant designs from the 16th and 17th century. Their production is usually marked with a cintamani motif. Jacoby is well-known for his authoritative publication 'Eine Sammlung orientalischer Teppiche' of 1923.

The original ‘Emperors’ Carpets’, a pair of highly sophisticated 16th century Safavid silk carpets, were purported to have been a diplomatic gift in 1698 from Tsar Peter the Great of Russia to the Holy Roman Emperor, Leopold I (1658-1705) to adorn his summer residence. Ultimately the pair were separated and are now located in different international museums. One of the pair, originally in the Imperial Habsburg Collection is now in Vienna (Österreichisches Museum für angewandte Kunst: MAK), see Völker, Angela, Die orientalischen Knüpfteppiche im MAK, Böhlau, Wien- Köln- Wiemar, 2001, Cat.No.86, pp.244-247 (Inv. T8334 /1922). In 1925, on the fall of the Habsburgs, to raise funds the Viennese museum sold the other to the London dealers, Cardinal and Harford, and the companion ‘Emperors’ carpet’ is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art New York (Rogers Fund, 1943 – 43.121.1)

Please note that this is a rug of Iranian Origin, and due to recent changes in the U.S. law, carpets and rugs of Iranian/Persian origin can no longer be imported into the U.S.