IMPORTANT ANATOLIAN PRAYER RUG, LADIK AREA, CIRCA 1800 OR EARLIER. CM194X118 Slight natural oxidation of hazelnut and brown colour. IMPORTANT ANATOLIAN PRAYER RUG, LADIK AREA, CIRCA 1800 OR EARLIER, SIGNS OF NATURAL BROWN OXIDATION. Rug from a small town in the Konya plain, south-central Turkey. Although the graphic compositions are stereotypical, it is the few graphic changes made that distinguish each specimen. As in this two-compartment specimen where a powerful crenellated or stepped multicoloured niche ends in a pinnacle resembling the bulb of a tulip, at its sides on a deep blue emerge two hypnotic iconic Ladik elements. Immediately below we notice two multicoloured scaled triangular shapes that are a strong reminder of the indentations of carpets from the 1600s and 1700s. This is surmounted by the characteristic compartment composed in this carpet of five elegant long-stemmed tulip flowers. This panel happens to be placed under the niche with the tulips upside down; a common stylistic feature in later examples. The characteristic intense madder red without any decorative elements creates a powerful contrast to the minor frames and the complex floral meander border, which is the rarest type of main border for the Ladik group. Of particular interest to carpet enthusiasts is the thin band with a white background adjacent to the field, this unusual decoration being attributable to the Ghiordes rugs or the closer Mudjur area. A second detail to be emphasised is the outer perimeter band of connected red tulip flowers reminiscent of the Turkomanic knotting traditions of Central Asia. Two bands in flat weave still present. Slight natural oxidation of the colour hazelnut and brown. A similar piece Sarayönü, Konya region, Central Anatolia, Turkey, 17th century. Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum, currently in the Vakiflar Museum in Istanbul.