A Persian Tabriz rug having a camel field with a curvilinear trellis overall of split-leaf and palmette vinery and scattered fleurons within a dark blue palmette vinery border. Tabriz, the capital of the northwestern Iranian province of Azerbaijan, has for centuries enjoyed a great reputation as a center of Persian culture. Under the benign patronage of Shah Abbas the Great (1587-1629), artists and artisans designed illuminated manuscripts, embroidered silks, painted miniatures and fabricated metal work in the Safavid style. It was in this fertile, creative atmosphere that the weavers of Tabriz antique carpets for the Court were inspired to reach for new artistic heights and created exceptional oriental rugs and carpets.