Fine antique Tekke rug

Steeped in history, this is a rug that could tell a thousand stories. This beautiful fine antique Tekke rug boasts exquisite time-aged colours, a weathered woollen pile as well as an archaic design. 

It's mature colour scheme displays a warming brown main colour along with detail shades in softened orange, beige and deep midnight. It's design is equally appealing, intriguing your eyes wherever you gaze upon it. The central field pattern initially captures your attention with it's arrangement of three columns of tribal emblems known as "guls". Whilst looking closer, you can't help but be fascinated with it's intricate border detailing and it's mightily impressive end borders. We love the single ivory stripe of star motifs at the top of the rug.

Discover some more about this fine antique Tekke rug

This handmade antique Tekke rug dates from the first quarter of the Twentieth century. Like the vast majority of Turkoman rugs from this era, this Tekke rug was made from just wool. It has a woollen pile - worn from the passage of time - and ivory coloured wool warps and woollen wefts that are a reddish shade. 

Another thing that you will notice about this Tekke rug is it's fine and intricate weave. This is a hand-knotted rug, and when you turn over a corner to inspect the back you will find the knotting is minuscule and incredibly detailed. The weave structure of Tekke rugs is that they have a flat back, a non-depressed weave construction, meaning that there are not deep grooves between the knots on the back of the rug.   

About the design of this antique Turkoman rug

Turkoman rugs are known for their field designs of repeating emblems known as "guls".

These, often octagonal shaped motifs, are called guls which means flower. Each tribe has it's own gul motifs, a heraldic tribal emblem unique to that specific tribe. The guls displayed in a Turkoman rug, consist of a larger (primary) gul and a smaller (minor) gul. 

A distinguishing feature of Tekke rugs is that often the primary guls are linked together. The attractive minor guls that we can see in this rug are known as Tshemtshe guls.

The Tekke

The Tekke were the largest and most dominant of the Turkoman tribes. They settled in many areas of Turkmenistan in the Nineteenth century.

Following the completion of the Central Asian Railway in 1888, the Tekke Rugs were among the first Turkoman Rugs to be exported in large numbers to the West. It was in this era that the name of the market town "Bokhara" was applied to Tekke rugs (as well as other Turkoman rugs). 

Using this antique rug in your home

This fine antique Tekke rug is still useable and is an appealing decorative choice for use in your home. Be mindful that this antique rug is in the region of one hundred years old, so it is not suitable for use in areas of heavy foot traffic. Ideally, make sure you use a good anti-slip rug underlay beneath it to help preserve it for future generations. 

A note on the condition of this antique Tekke rug

This antique rug shows all over heavy wear to the pile (please see our images 5, 6, 7, 9, & 10). There is a small repair to one corner (refer to images 10 & 11). It is slightly irregular in shape – they often are when they get to this age!

At The Oriental Rug Merchant, we like to preserve our antique rugs for their next custodian. We always expertly wash the rugs that we discover and where possible/or financially viable we repair them.

This Tekke rug has been prepared to our customary high standards. It has been professionally cleaned and repaired. The fringes have been secured and the side wrappings overcast. 

Key details: 

• Country of origin: Turkmenistan
• Size: 210×148cm / 6’11″x4’10″
• Thickness: varies between 3-5mm
• Pile: Wool, hand-knotted
• Warp: Wool
• Age: Dating from 1900-25
• Condition: See above notes