Antique Heriz rug with "Wag Wag" tree, Azerbaijan, NW Iran, C 1820, Rome, Giacomo Cohen and Sons Collection

The waq-waq tree is a particular image of distant Indian origin in which philosophy, religion and myth come together. The branches or the fruits of this tree are metamorphosed into human and animal monster heads, which scream "waq-waq"— hence the name, which means "howling" in Persian. Like all trees, this type of decoration is always linked to the mystery of life and regeneration and especially to the vital energy issuing forth from trees and to their great powers of divination. In fact, when Alexander the Great was poised to conquer the Orient, a speaking head from a tree of this type predicted his future. The waq-waq tree is depicted in some Iranian miniatures from the 13th and 14th centuries and made its appearance in Indian carpets in the 16th century, later spreading to Safavid Persia. It is also present in some rare 19th-centuiry Iranian carpets produced in Heriz, Azerbaijan province.