A rare find

John has recently come across this absolutely beautiful kelim. Sometimes he'll come across something that stands out by a million miles and you realise that you're in the presence of something very rare and special. And indeed, this is a Karabagh. These weavings come from the southernmost region of the Caucasus, and were renowned as being extremely decorative works, often featuring a French-inspired (Aubusson/Savonnerie) floral scheme as demonstrated beautifully here. I believe the design is known as gol farangi or "European rose" pattern, which became popular all over the Caucasus and Persia during the second half of the nineteenth century, and modern pieces don't use these designs anymore, so to come across them is a rare and delightful ocassion.

I don't like to put an accurate date on anything without having strong evidence, but I can't help but think that it's belongs somewhere between the 1920s to 1940s- those colours are so Art Deco! I'd be surprised if it was anything later. I'm not in any hurry to sell this, but in case you're wondering it's 235 x 182 cm and the price is £845.00 and you'll have to get through me first.

After the flood...

On the 1st November we were inevitably struck by the horrendous Stonehaven flood.

We had 2.5 ft of smelly, muddy water for Gordon to swim around in downstairs. We lost A LOT of stock- most tragically an early 19th century pure silk Kashan ::sob:: It is completely destroyed, with a tiny fragment left which I shall no doubt get my father to frame. I'll post photos of that up next week in commemoration.
Many other pieces were soaked through, including some antique and semi antique pieces, although they actually fared quite well, having been cleaned several times in their lives and therefore having little loose dye left. They're being hosed down in London just now, and dried off on giant radiators!

The problem with rugs that we have lost is that they will never truly be replaced, and we're very sad about it.

But, hey-ho, onwards and upwards! All the plasterboard & insulation & woodwork has been torn out, and the joiners will be in the second the meter reading says the space is dry enough- woohoo! It will look fantastic once it's completed (estimated completion date: mid January), not that it didn't look great before (see photos).
I reckon some nice painted tiles from Kashan would look pretty good on the floor, John's not convinced...

Welcome!

Welcome to my new blog! This is to let you know of what's happening in the John Briggs Perth & Stonehaven shops, and what new rugs, kilims, lanterns, ceramics, carved wood boxes, furniture & jewellery we are getting in. For the textile collectors among you, watch this space! I'll be posting pictures on the day new pieces arrive.

To kick it all off in style, here are some images of the fabulous Konya kilim we received recently from Turkey. It has the most spectacular colours, and notably a bright pink (a common dye in the first half of the twentieth century in Anatolian weaving). It's the combination of colours that makes this so attractive; the blue, yellow, green and pink dyes are incredibly bright & vivid, but contrasted against the very natural, soft, warm madder root background they give this piece so much depth and interest. The date "1938" is woven in white, against the deep navy of the central medallion. It measures 306 x 183cm (10ft x 6ft), price £1500.