Dear Denizalp D.,
I reached out to a few local Navajo and Hopi shops here in Arizona and I just heard back this morning. This rug is apparently not Navajo or Hopi. Do you have any additional information you can provide regarding this rug if it is not Native? What is your background in terms of antique textiles and rugs? I'm wondering if maybe this item requires more of a specialist appraiser?

Dear Abigail,

When you read my evaluation you can detect that I speak of the piece as a Navajo Style Rug. The knots and the weaving are quite similar with very asymmetrical patterns of knitting the pile. Since this is a contemporary piece it is quite normal in decoration it was affected by various sources and perhaps the trends of the period. Based on my background, I’ve personally had the chance to see more than 1200 pieces of rug and weaving in person and examine them and their knots. These pieces were in a great deal of variations from oriental rugs to aubussons to nordic pieces. I personally visited and collected information from 14 different museums related weaving cultures and rugs which are classified as the bests of the world that consists also the most valuable and unique pieces around the world. I’ve also evaluated more than 700 pieces of rugs during my career which 350 of them you can access and see from the Mearto portal. Apart from this I’m one of the rare experts that you can find in the market that has actually examined a 16th century rug by his hands, I’ve also seen still active ateliers of rugs to better enhance my ability to differentiate the knot types of the pieces which were located in Isparta, Manisa, Novi. What needs to be understood about the rugs and textile art is that just like any other art type you can not always specifically categorise each piece, this is due to several reasons. Firstly, pieces might have been done by individuals or ateliers that have existed in the market for a little time, which makes them almost impossible to detect. Secondly, a piece might have been executed in style of another thing, which means it’s an eclectic piece with several characteristics from different traditions. Thirdly, a piece might be a contemporary piece like yours and it might bot be executed in the traditional style but rather was made as a modern interpretation with different designs. To conclude, saying this isn’t an original Indian Navajo piece but it is something with a whole different name and tradition does not solve something or offer another view, it is very superficial without professionalism in it. Therefore I concluded that your piece was executed in Navajo style but with a different interpretation. If you have any further question I would like to answer them as well. I hope I was clear enough.