The inscription reads, Sefaresh-e ‘Arab-zadeh, 'Order of ‘Arab-zadeh'

The field design of the present carpet is copied from a magnificent Mughal carpet housed in the Museum of Applied Arts, Vienna (inv.no. Or 292). The lush setting and paired birds recall Indian painting traditions which focussed on naturalistic botany, and in the original Mughal carpet, had borders of grotesque masks. The weaver of the present lot has instead favoured a more typically Tabriz cartouche design within the borders. The Mughal prototype for this carpet is illustrated in Sarre and Trenkwald, Alt-Orientalische Teppiche: Herausgegeben Vom Österreichischen Museum Für Kunst Und Industrie, see lot 151 of the present sale.