This piece belongs to a small group of Shirvan rugs with similar design, colouring and detail. All feature 'Kufic'-type borders, usually on blue grounds; a polychrome inner border of boxed swastikas; unusual flowers in the lattice field; and inscribed dates, usually to the right of the prayer arch. This example is dated ah 1252, which translates to 1837 - probably 40 years earlier than when the rug was actually made. (Most of the analogous examples bear dates between 1875 and 1900, and there is no reason to suppose that this rug is any older.) Although essentially a typical Shirvan prayer rug, the dark Kufic' border and the swastikas of this piece give it a very different overall appearance. The 'Kufic' border is more a feature of rugs from the Kuba area (such as Perepedil, Konaghend and Chichi) and is very rarely seen on Shirvan rugs other than those in this group. A very similar example though with a more crowded design, was sold at Bonham's, London in 1993.