TURKMEN TRIBAL RUGS

74HALI ISSUE 151

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1Type 2 Beshir prayer rug [2.1], middle Amu Darya region, ca. 18001825. 1.45 x 2.31m (4'9" x 7'7"). Ralph & Linda Kaffel Collection, Piedmont, California, courtesy Rippon Boswell, Wiesbaden 2Type 1-A Beshir prayer rug [1.4], middle Amu Darya region, first half 19th century. 1.12 x 1.93m (3'8" x 6'4"). Jim Dixon Collection, Occidental, California 3Type 1-C Beshir prayer rug [1.24], middle Amu Darya region, ca. 1875. 1.12 x 1.70m (3'8" x 5'7"). Courtesy Sotheby’s New York
TURKMEN TRIBAL RUGS

Beshir prayer rugs

RALPH KAFFEL

Few Turkmen rugs are such obvious products of their environments as Beshir prayer rugs in that motifs associated with the surrounding rug weaving cultures can be clearly seen in their designs, and yet exactly where and by whom they were made still remains a matter of debate. In this context a well-known rug author and collector reviews the research into this enigmatic group and offers a method of dividing the known examples by design.

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