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156cm x 122cm / 5'1"
x 4'0, Knots: 83 (v) x 55 (h) = 4,565 / dm2,
Extremely rare, if not unique, Caucasian rug. The central field is dominated
by two large medallions, very similar to those found on traditional
Caucasian Sumak rugs. In this rug, however, the medallions are elongated
horizontally rather than vertically as in the traditional Kuba Konagends.
The traditional cruciform medallion design is, according to Ian Bennett,
"reminiscent of Kurdish weavings and certain Turkish villages." (on Oriental
Rugs - Volume 1 Caucasian, Suffolk, UK, 1981, pp. 256). Murray Eiland Jr. &
Murray Eiland III refer that "red-field soumaks in a relatively narrow range
of designs, with two, three, or four medallions, were woven in several towns
of the Kuba district, from at least the late nineteenth century and into the
Soviet era. The bulk of these were certainly workshop products, and a number
have dates." (on Oriental Rugs - A Complete Guide, London, 1998, pp. 288).
It should not be excluded that a few rugs were also made in these workshops,
with a pattern close to a traditional Sumak rug (see a photo of a Sumak rug
with a somewhat similar pattern on Murray L. Eiland, Oriental Rugs - A New
Comprehensive Guide, Little, Brown and Company, 1981, plate 39). Regarding
dating, we believe this rug to be a bit older, from the middle of the 19.th
century. No artificial dyes were found on this rug and it is worth noticing
the sophisticated rendition of several details and motifs in the rug as
opposed to the more stiff, rigid representation of them on traditional Kuba
Konagend rugs with traditional ?large cruciform medallions'. The main border
displays a traditional Caucasian 'crab' motif. The very unusual high density
of the weaving makes this piece an exceptionally collectable rug.
Literature: There are no similar rugs published. See Kuba Konagend rugs with
traditional large cruciform medallions' on: Ian Bennett, Oriental Rugs -
Volume 1 Caucasian, Suffolk, UK, 1981, plates 330 - 332; E. Gans-Ruedin,
Caucasian Carpets, Thames and Hudson, London, 1986, pp. 276-277; Murray L.
Eiland, Oriental Rugs - A New Comprehensive Guide, Little, Brown and
Company, 1981, plate 257; Murray Eiland Jr. & Murray Eiland III, Oriental
Rugs - A Complete Guide, London, 1998, plate 293; Ulrich Schurmann,
Caucasian Rugs, 1990, plates 103.
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