Mid-19th C Armenian Daghestan Prayer rug.

There was a Armenian community in Daghestan centred around the village of Karabakhli founded in 1797 by Armenian refugees from Derbent. The name of the village was given in honour of their homeland. Currently, Karabakhli is the only settlement in Dagestan where Armenians constitute a significant proportion of the population.

This border is found only on Armenian rugs and is based on the floor plan of Sissian Church 7th C, St. Hripsime 7th C, and many other early Armenian medieval churches. The rug has a so-called ‘floating Mihrab” found above all openings on Armenian medieval churches. The niches’ pointy shape is inspired by Armenian priests Veghars (Cowls). The field is covered by interlaced cruciforms and within each cruciform are various motifs formed by crosses.

The only thing constant in Armenian history no matter who subjugated it, was their awe-inspiring churches. Why wouldn’t they also display them on their rugs?