Khila Boteh

[Frank Petruziello Member Find all posts View Profile Close Frank Petruziello]

Hi all, I just acquired what I hope is an interesting and unusual rug. I believe it to be a Khila Boteh from Azerbaijan near Baku. The rug is about 40"x60" which is small for this type. I would be interested in anyone’s thoughts as to provenance, age, and quality. The rug has little pile left but is fairly even. I don’t think the selvedges are original. Best guess would be either side of 1900.




All thoughts welcome.

thanks,
Frank

[Steve Price Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Steve Price]

Hi Frank

If you posted photos of the rug, they're not showing up on my monitor. Can't help much without them, and might not be able to help much even with them.

Steve Price

[Frank Petruziello Member Find all posts View Profile Close Frank Petruziello]

Thanks Steve, let’s see if this works?

[Chuck Wagner Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close Chuck Wagner]

Hi Frank,

For what it's worth, in the rug world, the term keleh refers to a rug in a particular size range (usually around 6x8 ft), and the boteh description is accurate but not used in combination with keleh to attribute a rug to any specific place or class of work.

Looking through my book collection, I have found one good analog for your rug, in Ivan Neff and Carole Maggs' "Dictionary of Oriental Rugs" and it is described as from Kuba. They point out that, structurally, these are indistinguishable from work in nearby districts and as such are classified by color palette and motifs. I would say that the main border is the strongest indicator; these are not seen outside the greater Baku area. I agree with your suggested age, likely 1900-1920. Here is an example from their book, which they describe as late 1800's:



Regards
Chuck Wagner

[Frank Petruziello Member Find all posts View Profile Close Frank Petruziello]

Thanks Chuck, you found a great reference piece. In my description I was not referring to the size of the rug but it’s origin, the town of Khila near Baku. Enclosed is a reference from Fokker’s book describing this rug type. The names Chila and Khila seem to be used interchangeably as evidenced by his use of both. There are many references online to Khila Boteh or Khila Buta rugs.

thanks again,
Frank

[patrick weiler Member Find all posts View Profile Close patrick weiler]

One of the rugs I acquired very early in my collection is this Shirvan Boteh Khila - probably woven before WWI.
The color reproduction is a bit off - the yellow is the same in the corner elements top and bottom. But it sits on a wall in a dark corner with only the bottom lit by the daylight.
Patrick Weiler