Vintage Samarkand (Khotan) Rug BB6168 4'4" × 7'2" $5,000

This circa-1930 vintage Samarkand rug features a striking narrow central design of botanical abstractions in warm beige against a field of midnight blue. Multiple borders in beige containing floral abstractions complete the look of the vintage carpet. The vintage Oriental carpets from Kashgar, Yarkand and Khotan in the Chinese occupied Autonomous Region of Sikiang are collectively known as Samarkands – lands of arid steppes, deserts and mountain ranges traversed for thousands of years by caravans of merchants and traders from China to Western Europe along the Silk Route. Rugs from this region are typically rendered in a glossy wool, occasionally embellished with richly brocaded silk and metal-thread. Unlike Persian rugs with their reds and blues, Samarkand carpets have soft colors with startling additions: magenta with acid green, peachy beige with brown, saffron yellow with lacquer red, bone with brown or slate blue.