A superb vintage Turkish Hereke silk prayer rug (namazlık) of exceptional fineness and beauty — woven in the 1970s in the tradition of the Hereke Imperial Weaving Factory, the most celebrated and technically accomplished rug-weaving atelier in Ottoman and Turkish history, whose finest productions have been collected by royal households, heads of state, and major museums since the factory’s founding in 1843 by Sultan Abdülmecid I.
At a knot density of approximately 400–520 knots per square inch — achieved in pure silk pile on a silk foundation, using Turkish symmetrical (Ghiordes) knots tied by hand — this rug represents the upper tier of Hereke production quality. The result is a surface of almost hallucinatory fineness: design lines razor-sharp, color transitions seamless, the silk pile catching the light with a directional sheen that shifts from warm ivory to cool silver as the viewing angle changes.
The composition is a classic Ottoman court prayer rug of the highest order. A pointed mihrab arch frames the prayer field on an ivory silk ground of luminous warmth. At the apex, Arabic calligraphy — Allahu Akbar — is woven in elegant dark cursive script, rendered with the precision of a master calligrapher translated into silk. A central lamp motif is suspended from the apex, flanked by symmetrical arabesque scrollwork of extraordinary refinement — sinuous ivory stems, split-leaf palmettes, and small rosettes in the saz style of the Ottoman court ateliers of the 16th century.
The paradise bird is the compositional jewel of the piece: a fully realized phoenix or simurgh — orange-amber body, dark blue-green wing feathers rendered with individual barb detail, a long curving tail of great elegance — depicted perched above a double-gourd vase overflowing with flowering branches, drawn directly from the iconographic vocabulary of the Ottoman imperial workshops of Topıkapı.
The border system is multi-register and perfectly proportioned: a deep olive-green main border carrying a continuous arabesque scroll of ivory stems and palmettes; inner and outer ivory guard borders with running floral vines. A woven workshop cartouche is present in the lower border — confirming atelier production and adding provenance value for the serious collector.
Specifications
- Type: Vintage silk prayer rug (namazlık)
- Origin: Hereke, Kocaeli Province, Turkey — Imperial Weaving Factory tradition
- Period: 1970s
- Material: Pure silk pile on silk foundation (warp and weft)
- Knot type: Turkish symmetrical (Ghiordes) hand-tied knots
- Knot density: Approx. 400–520 knots per square inch (64–81 knots/cm²)
- Design: Mihrab prayer arch; Arabic calligraphy (Allahu Akbar); paradise bird (simurgh/phoenix) with vase; Ottoman court arabesque field (saz style); olive-green arabesque main border; ivory guard borders; woven workshop cartouche
- Colors: Ivory/cream ground, deep olive-green, madder crimson, soft peach, dusty rose, slate blue, dark brown-black
- Dimensions: 77 cm × 124 cm (2’6” × 4’1”)
Condition
Good to Very Good — the finest overall condition of any textile in this collection. Silk pile even, lustrous, and well-preserved throughout with no significant wear, no repairs, and no moth damage. Colors clear and unfaded. Fringe intact and even. Selvedges sound. A rug in this condition, of this quality, is increasingly rare on the open market.
