An Afshar 'Herati' Bag Face, South Persia, Circa 1875 “This piece has an indigo field with four horizontal bands in a variant Herati fish design

AN AFSHAR 'HERATI' BAG FACE, SOUTH PERSIA, CIRCA 1875 “This piece has an indigo field with four horizontal bands in a variant Herati fish design. The main border is in the usual SW Persian geometrical meander pattern of the ‘flower’ type. There are two guards in a boteh key-type pattern. The knotting is symmetrical, the warps are in ivory natural wool and wefts mainly two shoots in red-dyed wool. The bottom of face has a strip of weft-faced kelim plain weave in red-dyed wool decorated with a single row of weft twining. Slit panels are in a horizontal diamond pattern, three per panel, in various colours. There are two panel guards in reciprocal red and green triangles. The closure area is in extra-weft soumak wrapping. Above is a band of chevron-patterned twill in alternating brown and ivory. The top of the bag face is folded over in red and ivory plain weave and hemmed. The sides are in a single cord overcast in red.” (Benjamin, op.cit., LITERATURE: 3rd ed., 2004, p. 72 “The front face of this bag is complete and has good strong colours that bring out the pattern very well.” (Benjamin, op.cit., p. 72)