Chelaberd Kazak Rugs

Chelaberd Kazak Rugs are actually Armenian rugs from the Jraberd region of Ngorno Karabakh. Jraberd was one of the 5 Armenian kingdoms each under the control a Melik who was responsible to the Persian Govenor under the Safavid Shahs.

One of the best known types of Kazak Rugs are not really Kazak Rugs at all. These rugs the Chelaberd Kazak Rugs are actually from Karabagh which is the region south and east of the Gendge/Kazak. However there are a number of closely related rugs that are attributable to Kuba or Shusha and there are other especially older related examples that are not specifically attributable. Hubel suggests that since Chelaberds and earlier Karabagh rugs share the same design, materials, and structure they must come from the same place even though he does note that Chelaberds are similar to rugs from the Kazak region. Hubel, Reinhard G. The Book of Carpets page 123.

map of area

Where is Chelaberti?
Many of these rugs are from the Chelaberti area or Jraberd region in Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh. Historically Artsakh or as it is sometimes called Nagorno Karabakh, was made up od Five Duchies, Khachen, Jraberd, Varanda, Dizak and Golestan. Chelaberti/Jraberd is the northern most region bordering on the Gendge/Kazak region.

Chelaberd Rug Structure:

Warp; Wool, Z2S, natural ivory.
Weft: Wool, Z, Z2, 2 – 4 shoots light red.
Pile: Wool, symmetrical knot.
Density: 9 – 11h and 7 – 9 v.
Sides:
Ends: Warp fringe.
According to Pete Stone, Chelaberds are all wool and have an average of 60 kpsi and average about 35 square feet. Stone attributes them to the town of Chelabi in Southern Karabagh. Oriental Rug Lexicon page 47. (JBOC I think Chelaberti in Northern Karabagh is more likely.)

According to Ian Bennett Chelaberd’s rugs have warps and wefts of wool, the warp are usually natural white and the wefts are died red., knot counts tend to be around 800 per sq.dm ( 52 per sq. in). On good examples, the pile is thick and high. Oriental Rugs Volume 1 page 98.

In Oriental Rugs Volume 1 Caucasian.makes the observation that Kasim Ushak are indistinguishable from Chelaberd rugs. Kazanbulak is a neighboring town to Chelaberti (Chelaberd) in the northern most area of Karabagh (Nagorno Karabahk).

Eiland & Eiland argue for an Armenian provenance rather than a Kurdish one. Two very interesting clue they offer are the great number of Kasim Ushaks with Armenian inscriptions and perhaps more significantly the incidence of packing cables. Oriental Rugs A Complete Guide page 24. These are heavy cabled wefts at irregular intervals used to hammer down to keep the rug straight and compact. This technique is rare except in carpets such as Dragon Carpets.

Examples:

Chelaberd (Eagle Kazak) Rug Caucasus 3rd quarter 19th Century

Chelaberd (Eagle Kazak) Rug Caucasus 3rd quarter 19th Century


The Bortz Chelaberd (Eagle Kazak) Rug

The Bortz Chelaberd (Eagle Kazak) Rug

Caucasus Circa 1800. This definitely has impact and power. It is rare and the single medallion depicts an early age. What is most important are the two opposing shields at the top and bottom of the medallion. Most rug experts believe there are less than a handful in existence.


The Eberhart Herrmann Eagle Kazak Rug

The Eberhart Herrmann Eagle Kazak Rug

Southwest Caucasus, early 19th century. Repiled areas, small rewoven areas, reselvaged, missing outer guard stripe. 4 ft. 11 in. by 5 ft. 10 in. (150 by 178 cm)

Warp; Wool, Z2S, natural ivory.

Weft: Wool, Z, Z2, 2 – 4 shoots light red.

Pile: Wool, symmetrical knot.

Density: 9 – 11h and 7 – 9 v.

Sides: Not original.

Ends: Warp fringe.

Colors: Ivory, gold, light blue, blue, blue green, ochre, dark brown.


Sunburst Zejwa Kuba Rug

Sunburst Zejwa Kuba Rug

3 foot 4 inches by 4 foot 6 inch.

This is an Antique Sunburst Zejwa. In the trade it is common to call this type of rug a Kazak, but that is a misnomer. The rug is in excellent condition with very little repair. The exception to this is in the corrosive brown field where the rug has had expert repair. This is a very pretty rug with a bold powerful design. The border and some of the field icons are clearly influenced by Sejshour Kuba rugs.

Caucasus, 19th Century.

Structure: Symmetrical. 8 knots per horizontal inch and 9 knots per vertical inch. 72 per square inch (1116 per square decimeter). Depressed.

Yarn Spin: Z.

Warp: ivory wool

Weft: 2 shots ivory wool

Pile: 2 Wool singles.

Ends: Bottom remains of knotted fringe end finish, Top warp fringe.

Selvages: 3 cord blue wool.

The Range of color is excellent. The red is one of the highlights of this rug. The green is variegated and showing traces of yellow, as is seen with the best old pieces. The dyes in the rug all look appropriate for a natural dye attribution. Of course this rug has not been tested but it has the look appropriate to the very best pieces. This rug certainly merits 5 out of 5 stars and would be at home in any of the world’s top collections.


Floral Carpet early 18th Century

Floral Carpet early 18th Century
This early transitional carpet type uses quiet a bit of purple.


Fragmentary Dragon Rug with Balanced Design and Sunburst Center

Fragmentary Dragon Rug with Balanced Design and Sunburst Center

Karabagh or Shirvan. Early 18th Century

Size: L. 3.00 m. (911011) x W. 2.70 m. (8110″)

Warp: Z2S wool in ivory and in a light range of natural shades. Two levels.

Weft: Z2S wool in light natural ranges, dyed light red. Two shots. No singles noted.

Pile: 2Z wool. Gordes knotted, pile slanting to right. 7 or 81/2 or 8 horiz. x 7 or 6 or 81/2 vert. (49, 51, 68 per sq.in.).

Sides: Remains of red wool selvage on 3 or 2 cords. Inner cord a single, weft attached.

Ends: Cut.

Colors: Ivory; black-brown; light yellow; dull yellow-orange; scarlet; medium blue (abrashed light medium); blue-blue-green; dark green; medium violet.

Condition: Entire lower portion lost, with a new run of border added; outer guard stripe at upper end is also new, with some reweaving of this stripe at the sides. Severely worn, with much pile replacement and inpainting.


The Alberto Levii Eagle design Rug

The Alberto Levii Eagle design Rug

Eagle design Rug, Southern Caucasus, Karabakh area, Chelaberd, Circa 1870, 245 x 165 cm (8’ x 5’5”). Symmetrically knotted wool pile on a wool foundation.

Rugs having these sunburst medallions are often called Eagle Kazaks, although they are now more often correctly attributed to Chelaberd, located in the Karabakh region. Like Chondzoresk (‘Cloudband Kazak’) and Kasim Ushag rugs that come from the same province, Chelaberd rugs are characterised by a strong palette, a silky lush pile and a set system of borders. These borders are almost invariantly composed of six-pointed red and blue stars connected by a thin vinery on an ivory ground flanked by blue-black zig-zag guard stripes. Similar to the two above-mentioned typologies, the eagle design derives from seventeenth century Caucasian silk embroideries and is seen on the pattern of a few rare early Caucasian rugs of the so-called ‘transitional’ type. The large width of the present example allows for a more spacious design, permitting the eagles to spread their wings to thier widest extent. The exceptional condition of this piece offers the chance to fully appreciate nineteenth century Caucasian weaving art at its best.


Karabagh Floral Carpet Fragment

Karabagh Floral Carpet Fragment

Wool; Fragment – 2’8 ” x 7’1.” This fragment came from a “gallery rug,” which was typically in the 7.6 x 18 size. The center medallion is pure sunburst as in the Chelapert or known in the trade as the Eagle Kazak. The border is almost identical to my other contemporaneous fragment.

The condition of this rug fragment is very low all over. There are reweaves and pulled together places. The three sides are bound with cotton tape.

Warp: wool, 2 strands, Z-spun, S-plied, brown and ivory.

Weft: wool, 2 strands, Z-spun, S-plied, light and dark with red traces.

Pile: wool, 2 strands, Z-spun, S plied.

Knot: symmetrical, h. 8, v. 9, 81/square inch.

Edges: Remains of wool selvage. Weft returns around a double warp into the pile.

Ends: cut and taped.

Colors: (12) ivory, 3 shades blue, black, brown, tan, 2 shades red, gold, purple, green, several shades of each color.


Chelaberd Kazak Karabagh rug

Chelaberd Kazak Karabagh rug

The evolution of the design of the “dragon” transition pieces is well documented.Their connection with the Kurdish woven Kasim-Usag rugs of the same South Caucasus area is also well known. The medallions consist always of a green or blue cross on a white ground with a central red stylized floral diamond, and the field color is usually brick-red. In structure Chelaberd’s rugs have warps and wefts of wool, the warp usually white and the weft died red., knot counts tend to be around 800 per sq.dm (52 per sq. in). On good examples, the pile is thick and high.

In this attractive piece, dated 1330 (1912 AD.), the blue field and the swastika motifs are unusual, the stylized floral meander in the minor borders are more northwest Persian and the chalice design is of the “V” type shape commonly attributed to Kurdish rugs.


A Kazak (Karabagh) rug

A Kazak (Karabagh) rug

Circa 1880 oxidized browns, foldwear, sides and ends fraying slightly. Approximately 7ft. 7in. by 5ft. 7in. (2.31 by 1.70m.)


Zejwa Rug

Zejwa Rug

Northeast Caucasus, Kuba area, Circa 1850. 132 x 101 cm (4’4” x 3’4”). Symmetrically knotted wool pile on a wool foundation

The characteristic sunburst motif of this rare single medallion Zejwa rug is flanked by a pair of large cartouches containing hooked elements and framed by an unusual cloudband-type border. The careful rendition of the design clearly indicates its derivation from seventeenth century Caucasian silk embroideries. The primitive feeling of the rug together with the refined choice of palette clearly separates this piece from the plethora of east Caucasian sunburst design weavings of the latter part of the nineteenth century.


A Karabagh Tshelaberd rug (Adler-Kasak Karabagh Tshelaberd rug)

A Karabagh Tshelaberd rug (Adler-Kasak Karabagh Tshelaberd rug)

Size 223 x 153 cm. The special thing about this so-called Eagle Kasak is its splendidly preserved, slightly lower only in the age-related corroded dark brown, fleshy thick pile. An exemplary standard of representatives of his group.


A Chelaberd Kazak Rug, late 19th c.

A Chelaberd Kazak Rug, late 19th c.

Origin: South Caucasus, Karabagh Region, late 19th. Size: approx. 243 x 147 cm.

Notes on Condition: Literature References. Sides partly overcast, minor losses to both ends. Corroded browns partly re-knotted. Footwear.