Bakhtiari Pile Double Saddle Bag

Two pockets, one for each side of the animal, and each one dressed for the occasion.

This pile double saddle bag is Bakhtiari, from Persia, present day Iran, and dates to the early 20th century. It is wool. The Bakhtiari, a largely pastoral people of the Zagros Mountains, are generally known for sturdy weavings made for use on migration, including bags slung across pack animals. Both faces are worked in deep red pile with dark blue, each with a central rectangular panel of stylized tree or arrow motifs, framed by borders of small geometric figures. A flat-woven band joins the two halves, with tassels at the sides. It is 3 feet wide and 4.3 long.

Luggage, from an age when luggage tried harder.