Yalameh Persian Runner rug, Nested Diamond Medallions, Circa 1980s

Yalameh rugs are widely regarded as the finest of all Persian tribal weaving, and the long runner is the format the village made its name on. This example carries the classic Yalameh composition: a column of nested stepped diamond medallions, each on its own ground of indigo, madder red, deep aubergine or salmon, every one outlined in the hooked white zigzag that gives these rugs their unmistakable sparkle. Between the medallions the field fills with the small pleasures of tribal weaving, tiny birds, botehs, stars and comb motifs, drawn freehand and never twice the same.

It was woven around the 1980s in the Yalameh villages of Fars province, hand-knotted in lustrous local wool with the dense, solid construction the type is prized for. Our dye analysis found healthy small-lot variation through the madder reds and salmon, layered indigo blues and undyed ivory wool, the traditional palette handled with real care. The pile is full and even throughout, the braided fringes intact, and the colour bright and unfaded.

At 330 x 87 cm this is a proper hallway length, and Yalameh runners of this size and condition are genuinely scarce in Australia. Dense enough for the busiest corridor in the house, charming enough that guests will stop on their way through.

Specs: Origin: Yalameh, Fars province, Iran. Design: nested diamond medallions. Age: circa 1980s. Structure: hand-knotted wool pile, wool foundation. Size: 330 x 87 cm.