$1,760. A slate-blue lobed medallion rests at the centre of a creamy ivory field, surrounded by curling arabesques and pinwheel blossoms, with the deep indigo border repeating the ornament in miniature. Kashan sits at the edge of the central Persian desert and holds one of the longest weaving pedigrees in the world; the city supplied silk carpets to the Safavid court, and its nineteenth-century revival under master weavers such as Mohtasham produced work still regarded as the high-water mark of Persian town weaving. Kashan rugs are built on the asymmetrical Persian knot, which permits the fluid curvilinear line seen in these arabesques where the coarser symmetrical knot would force angularity. Small in format but finely drawn, the tight knotting rewards close viewing. Design pattern: Lobed central medallion with arabesque field, Kashan. Size: 2'9" x 4'0". Gallery Collection.