Page 201 - ART OF THE ISLAMIC AND INDIAN WORLDS Carpets, Ceramics Objects, Christie's London Oct..27, 2022

Amir Lashgar Mahmoud Ayrom (1881-1933) Amir Lashgar Mahmoud Ayrom, seated on the right
hand side of Reza Shah together with other military
leaders

THE PROPERTY OF A LADY
■*187
A NEAR PAIR OF QASHQAI
MILLEFLEURS PRAYER RUGS
SOUTH PERSIA, CIRCA 1900
Overall excellent condition transmission of this design from India to Persia,
7ft.10in. x 4ft.10in. (240cm. x 148cm.); to be taken up by weavers from the semi-nomadic
7ft.7in. x 4ft.11in. (230cm. x 150cm.) (2) Qashqa’i confederation in Fars province.
£15,000-25,000 US$18,000-29,000
As well as being unusual as an almost-
€18,000-29,000
perfectly matched pair, almost certainly woven
contemporaneously in the same atelier, these
PROVENANCE: carpets have a well-documented provenance.
Amir Lashgar Mahmoud Ayrom (1881-1933)
from whom they passed by descent to the They were owned by Amir Lashgar Mahmoud
present owner Ayrom (1881-1933, see illustrations). The maternal
grandfather of the present consignor, he was a
The ‘niche and millefleurs’ design of these decorated general in the Cossack Brigade and
prayer rugs takes its cue from Mughal a close ally of Reza Shah (r. 1925-41). He was
pashmina carpets, such as the examples in married to Ozra Ayromlu, cousin of Tajelmolouk
the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Ayromlou, Queen of Persia 1921-1945 through
and in the Österreichisches Museum fur her marriage to Reza Shah. The pair of rugs
Angewandte Kunst, Vienna (Daniel Walker, then passed by descent to the present owner. A
Flowers Underfoot: Indian carpets of the Qashqa’i prayer rug woven to a similar design
Mughal era, New York, 1997, pp.131-2). A pair and dated AH 1309/ 1891-92 AD was sold in
of cypress trees and spandrels in the top half these Rooms, 10 April 2008, lot 98. A further
th
create a niche which frames a vase overflowing comparable rug is published by Eberhart
with flowers. Likely woven in Kashmir in the Herrman, Von Konya bis Kokand, Seltene
eighteenth century, those carpets were in turn Orientteppiche, III, Munich, n.d., p.151, no.90.
inspired by the ‘niche-and-flower’ carpets For a further example of a nineteenth-century
which date from the reign of Shah Jahan interpretation of this classic design, see lot 199 of
(r.1628-58). The present lot attests to the the present sale.

198 In addition to the hammer price, a Buyer’s Premium (plus VAT) is payable. Other taxes and/or an Artist Resale Royalty 199
fee are also payable if the lot has a tax or λ symbol. Check Section D of the Conditions of Sale at the back of this catalogue.