Upcoming Austria Auction Company Sale

[View this email in your browser]( [Austria Auction Company]( Fine Antique Oriental Rugs XXXIV Auction: 21 October 2023, 4pm CEST Preview: 18–20 October 11am–5pm CEST, 21 October 11am–4pm CEST Palais Breuner, Singerstrasse 16, Vienna [Online Live Bidding]( Udo Langauer’s Austria Auction Company will hold its 'Fine Antique Oriental Rugs XXXIV' sale on 21 October 2023 at 4pm CEST at its Palais Breuner salerooms in Vienna. There will be many options for the well-informed bidder within a broad selection of over 200 unique pieces. Among the lots that share the auctioneer’s highest expectations is an important and large early Salor trapping ([Lot 53]( shown above). In the past, the size of these large prestige trappings led experts to ascribe them a range of different uses. For many years they were described as having been used to decorate the camels in a wedding procession. But these three-medallion examples amply illustrate the problem with this theory, since they are clearly too large to be used in such a context. They are now considered to be tent decorations for wedding celebrations. There are fewer than a dozen of the three-medallion type known, excluding the small three-medallion subgroup that lack the narrow indents on the top edges of the field. This example has small, diamond-shaped end brackets on the horizontal arms in the medallions, a feature seen on only one example previously in the 'Wher' Collection in Switzerland; that example however has different borders. The silk in the medallion has oxidised and would have been dyed with the insect dyes cochineal and lac and perhaps even some madder, mixtures of which have been used in varying intensities in the wool for certain small details throughout the weaving. It is a masterclass in dyeing. An interesting idiosyncrasy of this piece is the way that the tree design in the lower arched reserves connects to the border rather than being freestanding, as is more typical, and occurs in the upper panel. Another highlight is a Shahsavan shaddha ([Lot 80]( below left). One hundred and one camels adorn this flatwoven cover, a herd that would convey the wealth and status of the owner, which may well be reflected in the commissioning of this cover. The transportation of goods north and south, east and west brought the khanates in the Caucasus great wealth throughout the 18th and 19th centuries at the southern end of the Silk Road. This trade was also the vehicle for the transmission of people and ideas, materials and designs. When it was published in pride of place in Kilim – the Complete Guide, the authors Alastair Hull and José Luczyc-Wyhowska, drew attention to the baby camels and the dog-like creatures harassing the legs of the camels, suggesting that this depicts the progress of a caravan rather than simply camels standing still. The mixing of red and blue warps on the inner parts of the panels, switching to only dark-blue warps and wefts, is typically of shaddha weavings of the Shahsavan, who would have used these iconic flatweaves as hangings and covers in many different circumstances. Also noteworthy is an early Eagle Group II torba ([Lot 145]( below right). This torba is a member of a rare group of only about five known Eagle göl Group II torbas, demonstrating what a rare design this example has. The main element has a tree out of which grow flowers and a bird with outstretched wings. These are arranged in offset rows in which the design elements in blue/green and red are reversed. While not much is known about the identities of the Eagle göl groups, a variation of this design is found in the elem design of nine Eagle göl Group II chuvals, and it also makes an appearance on at least one Salor ensi elem. The minor and major borders are seen on Yomut kaps and mafrashes, helping this one torba illustrate how intertwined and yet complex the relationships were between the Turkmen tribes before 1850. This piece was previously dated to the 18th century, and is arguably the best drawn of this small group by virtue of its excellently proportioned field and great colour. View the many other interesting examples in this auction by clicking below. [View the virtual showroom.]( [Fine Antique Oriental Rugs XXXIV]( © 2023 Hali Publications Limited, All rights reserved. [unsubscribe from this list]( [update subscription preferences](