Antique suzani from Tashkent, from mid to late 1800s.

“Suzani” or “suzan” derives from the Persian word "suzan" for "needle" and refers to bright silk embroidered wall hangings and bedspreads that adorned homes of people on festive occasions.

This gorgeous Tashkent Suzani is the palak type, which is the most famous kind to originate from Tashkent. These suzanis have a variable number of decorated circles, and the entire surface of the palak is covered with solid, embroidered symbols and dark red circles. Palak (or falak in Arabic) means the sky or fate. Falak is also a female name meaning sky or star. The warm red color symbolizes sun or fire worship indicative of the design’s pre-Islamic origins. This is the only kind of suzani where solar and astral motifs dominate over vegetative ones. The whole surface of the piece is entirely embroidered. Only natural dyes were used to colour the threads of the suzani. The dating of the item is supported by the bright hue of cochineal red dye, which was in use until the 1890s.

While this suzani is in wonderful condition, there are small tears on the periphery, presumably from where this was attached to a wall or another item. The small signs of wear that are present on this suzani are expected in items of this age.

Dimensions: 105” x 80”