8' X 6'6" Rare Ersari Beshir Turkoman Carpet [SH-365]

In Christies East catalog, September 11, 1990, Page 91, we find a rare Ersari Beshir Turkoman Carpet from the C. Meyer-Müller collection, described as horizontal rows of alternating botehs and flowers with a similar boteh design, seven borders. This carpet shows only the bottom row of six leaves with an overlaid dual lines flowing upward into a gable roof and three protrusions at the top. In the book Turkmen, Tribal Carpets and Traditions Textile Museum, Mackie and Thompson, page 198, figure 61, Hans Konig refers to a subgroup of the Ersari who wove the rug he depicts, showing a field of tulip calyxes (?) predominating. His figure 61 shows alternating tulip/boteh and six-leaf/gable mirab with many borders, including a serrated scrolling vine. In the next book, Gols and Guls II, Dr. David M Reuben, page 29, an Ersari carpet no. 14, dated to the 1st half, featuring illustrated compartments, described as bird/animal heads with a flower/stem center and 3 flowers at the top. A three-row border with the main, a serrated, coiled leaf border. The carpet we illustrate is woven with the two alternating motifs we described in the above references. They depict a vase/tulip growing into a six-leaf/bird animal head and two flowing lines upward forming a gable/mirab with 3 hooked devices/ram horns. Note, at the top of the vase/tulip, a pair of creatures, a bird and a dragon with a crest glowing indigo and electric blue, flowing continuously through each row. Our museum-quality hand wash reveals 8 glowing/saturated natural colors on a pleasing red madder ground. The extremely colorful and archaic main border depicts a heavily serrated curling bird/dragon, many with white dots on its body. The main border elements enter and leave the guard borders as they curl around the carpet perimeter. The outer border shows a purplish pomegranate blossom edge and a bird head motif. Original kilim ends, light yellow and strong green dye, the attention to color shift and woven details suggests this was woven for a tribal Kahn? A size of 8' X 6'6" compared to the 3 that we showed our carpet fits into the size of a tribal weaving. What is clear from the three carpet references the weaver combined many Ersari Beshir distinct tribal elements in this spectacular tribal carpet.