Original Oushak – 1900s Antique Turkish Rug – Tribal Carpet – 7′ x 9’3″ ft.

Size: 7′ x 9’3″ ft.

Oushak rugs have been woven in Western Turkey since the beginning of the Ottoman period. Historians attributed to them many of the great masterpieces of early Turkish carpet weaving from the fifteenth to the seventeenth centuries. However, less is known about what happened to production there in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. When things become clearer toward 1900, the Oushak region re-emerges as a major center, this time for room-size decorative rugs. Antique Turkish carpets such as these are desirable today as highly decorative pieces. They come in central medallion designs as well as patterns of smaller allover medallions or scattered sprays of vine scroll and palmettes. They are notable for the grand, monumental scale of the designs, often a subdued palette in soft apricot and golden saffron tones whose pleasing qualities are enhanced by their particularly soft and lustrous wool.

Cosmopolitan and sophisticated are two words that aptly describe Oushak’s luxurious carpets. Although the Ghiordes knot and the quirky angular designs have a certain primitive air, regional rugs are exceptionally unique and attractive.

The Oushak Rugs have become the rugs of choice for many of the top interior decorators in the world today. For the most part they are not high quality rugs but that is what makes them so special. These carpets are also extremely desirable because of their colors – which are usually much lighter and “happier” in feel than rugs from other regions. So if you are looking for an antique or vintage rug with a large scale design and soft colors, theses should top your list.