Antique Turkish Oushak Beige Hand Knotted Wool Rug BB3913 16'5" × 21'2" $120,000

A late 19th century Turkish Oushak (Ushak) antique rug, the cream field with a very subtle vinery pattern overall surrounding a classic central medallion containing floral motifs within a pistachio floral motif border.

Oushak rugs (in Turkish known as Uşak Kilimi) are carpets that use a particular set of designs, called by convention after the town of Uşak – one of the largest cities in Western Anatolia, which from the early days of the ottoman Empire to the dawn of the 20th century was a major center of rug production (and still stands among the most important ones in the world). Anatolia literally translates into “land of the rising sun”, and historically, antique Oushak Oversized rugs are classified as Anatolian. Interestingly enough, the level of international popularity reached by the carpets from Uşak became such that the word “Ushak” is considered an English word of Turkic origin.

Ushak Turkish carpets, particularly those known as ‘Lotto carpets’, are among the later types of Oriental carpets in Renaissance painting, as they were imported by Europeans, where they adorned cathedrals, churches, and the homes of the wealthy and powerful.