1'3 x 2 Persian Ardebil Baby Rug | Wool and Silk on Cotton | Rust and Sky Blue Vintage Sample

This 1'3 x 2 Persian Ardebil baby rug is a hand-knotted wool and silk piece on a cotton foundation, woven at approximately 250 knots per square inch. A stepped geometric medallion in ivory with rust, sky blue, mauve, and mint green accents sits centered on a deep rust red field. Sky blue and rust corner brackets frame the medallion, the rug is bordered by a vivid sky blue main border filled with small brown floral repeats, and dusty rose guard borders carry the eye out cleanly. Silk highlights run through the medallion drawing and floral motifs in the field, giving the surface reflective contrast against the wool pile. Pieces this size were traditionally woven as master weaver samples and showpieces, never intended for floor use.

Design and Motifs

The composition centers on a classic Ardebil stepped geometric medallion: an ivory ground carrying four mauve-framed cartouches with mint green and rust centers, arranged around a small red star at the very center. Stepped navy and rust outlines define the medallion edge, with curling brown and blue leaf forms reaching outward into the rust field. The corner spandrels carry stepped sky blue and brown leaf motifs on rust, with small ochre yellow accents that catch the eye at the inner edges. The main border on sky blue is densely woven with small brown and ochre floral repeats, framed by twin dusty rose guard borders with miniature geometric repeats. The entire drawing reads with the structural clarity Ardebil weaving is known for: every line geometric, every motif balanced, no curvilinear elements.

Colors and Placement

The palette is anchored by deep rust red in the field and inner spandrels, lifted by a vivid sky blue main border that gives the rug a tonal energy unusual at this scale. Ivory in the medallion brings light to the center, with dusty rose and mauve frames, navy stepped outlines, mint green leaf details, brown and ochre yellow accents woven throughout. Silk highlights in the medallion and floral detail catch light at different angles. At 1'3 x 2 this works as a collectible piece, framed and displayed on a wall, set on a console or coffee table as a textile object, used as a chair seat cover, or given as a meaningful Persian rug gift. The piece is small enough to ship as a flat package, large enough to read clearly across a room when displayed.

Origin and Construction

Hand-knotted in Ardebil in northwest Persia, this rug is built on a cotton foundation with a wool and silk pile at approximately 250 knots per square inch. Ardebil is one of the oldest weaving centers in Persia and the source of the famous 16th century Ardabil carpet now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the city has continued producing rugs in distinctive geometric and stepped-medallion designs for centuries. Pieces at this scale are traditionally woven as master weaver samples, demonstration pieces, or collector miniatures, never intended for floor use, and the construction reflects that with full silk fringes, crisp selvages, and full unworn pile throughout. As a direct importer, Rugs.net offers free shipping and free returns to all 50 states, same-day refunds, and our price beat guarantee.