Framed carpet fragment of a front facing five clawed dragon, most likely made in the Baotou-Suiyuan region of China circa 1900, which has (much more recently) been professionally mounted and enclosed in a black wooden frame. The blue dyes appear to be natural, and the main field ‘peach-like’ colour seen on the front has faded from a darker red (as can be seen in the close-up photo from the back) which may have come from logwood, a natural dye well known to fade because of its light sensitive properties. The design, with the ‘stripes’ emanating outwards from the central dragon give a starburst-like effect that is not only attractive but rather unique. The pile is worn but there are no repairs in the fragment itself. ALREADY SOLD.