Austria Auction Company will hold its seventh auction of 2026 on 23 October. Masterpieces V offers 55 antique rugs and textiles, a varied and interesting group in which no single region or typology takes precedence. The oldest piece is an impressive Nazca mantle from the 3rd to 6th century CE, apparently in good condition and estimated at €40,000 to 60,000.
Silk Yarkand Saf, East Turkestan, dated 1210 (1795). 398 x 171 cm (13' 1" x 5' 7"). Lot 9, Austria Auction Company, 23 October 2026. Est. €30,000 to 40,000
The pieces that caught my eye, however, are more firmly rug orientated. The most noticeable and unusual is the silk Yarkand saf, lot 9. Its thorough catalogue entry notes that four examples are known. All share the same subject matter and date, yet it seems that the more examples we have, the less we know. The ground colour varies little between them, while the expression of the cow is more or less contorted from one to the next. They are sensibly considered to be commissions made by or for Western clients around 1910, rather than in 1210 AH (1795).
Tekke Bird Asmalyk, Turkmenistan, circa 1800. 137 x 86 cm (4' 6" x 2' 10"). Lot 32, Austria Auction Company, 23 October 2026. Est. €50,000 to 70,000
Two other Central Asian pieces deserve mention. Lot 32, the Kaffel Tekke bird asmalyk, is iconic and returns to auction having sold at Grogan & Company, Boston, on 21 January 2024 for $52,480. It is a particularly attractive example, with white plumage above the birds, and is the kind of weaving that would enhance most collections. The small Samarkand suzani, lot 31, has an impact far greater than its size. Its unusual central medallion follows the four and one design found throughout the rug weaving belt, but most notable are the polychrome curved botehs, almost flower-like, that flank the medallion on the horizontal axis. They lend it something of the vibrant and fantastical quality associated with so-called ‘Lakai’ suzanis. In apparently good condition, I would expect it to exceed its estimate.
