Rare, fine and exceptional Kachan Mortachem rug (Iran)...

Rare, fine and exceptional Kachan Mortachem rug (Iran) Signed: portrait of Nur Ali Shah Late 19th/early 20th century Workshop of Maitre Mortachemi Famous Master Weaver of the Shah in Kachan Portrait of Nur Ali Shah Dimensions 206 x 138 cm Kork quality silky lambswool velvet on cotton foundation Density approx. 7,500 knots per dm 2 Remarkable state of preservation Fresh colors Beautiful polychromy Nur Ali Shah, who died in 1801, was one of the leaders of the Ne'mat Allahi Sufi brotherhood in Iran during the 18th century. His portrait, of a charming young man, appeared in various media throughout the Qajar period. Here, he is depicted wearing the "taj" (cap/crown), one of the insignia of Iranian Sufis (darwish). It is decorated with the "Nad-e Ali" prayer, glorifying the high dignity of Imam 'Ali, the first Shiite imam. The calligraphic cartouches around the painting feature one of the poetic pieces from Nur Ali Shah's "Divan" (Poetic Book). Nur Ali Shah (famous Dervish), center, resting in a Persian garden surrounded by two trees of life with fruit and flowers finely drawn in polychrome, holding an apple and an axe. This carpet is represented by a painting from the second quarter of the 19th century, on display at the Musée d'art et d'histoire de Genève (painting in black ink, gouache and gold on paper mounted on pink cardboard and framed in dark blue). Remarkable perspective of palaces against a backdrop of flower-filled valleys. Note the brick-red cartouche with the signature: Portrait of Nur Ali Shah. Triple border decorated with rows of cartouches inlaid with poetic inscriptions about God and morality in life. Expert : Frank Kassapian