An exceptional mid-20th century Persian Malayer rug hand-knotted with an elegant allover Herati geometric pattern on a rare and highly desirable ivory background — a color of unusual luminosity and freshness that sets this piece apart from the more common blue and red field Malayer rugs. The intricate design features stylized floral and fish motifs in shades of navy, red, French blue, and brown, creating both movement and visual symmetry across the field.
Beautifully rendered corner spandrels in soft French blue and a classic navy border frame the composition with balance and contrast. Rare for its age, the rug retains a full wool pile — adding plushness and preserving both texture and depth, making it luxurious underfoot and visually rich in a way that lower-pile examples cannot match. The Malayer district of Western Persia — located in the Hamadan province, east of the Zagros Mountains — produced village rugs of remarkable quality and diversity throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries. Malayer rugs are distinguished by their fine weave, their inventive use of design formats drawn from both the Hamadan and Sarouk traditions, and a palette of naturally dyed wool whose depth and complexity reward close study. The finest Malayer rugs, particularly those in the camel hair field and Herati allover formats, are among the most sought-after village rugs of Western Persia.
