Ethereal Luxury: Erased Persian Medallion Rug

PALIMPSEST, 300400 cm hand knotted luxury rug, overhead portrait view. Undyed ivory rug bearing the ghost of an erased classical Persian medallion carpet. Lost pattern survives only through subtle sculpted pile relief and shifting silk sheen, never colour contrast. Original design: sixteen lobed central medallion (~47% of rug width, exactly centred), vertical pendants, corner quarter medallions, scrolling tendrils, broad classical border with narrow guard bands. Nearly all erased. Strongest surviving relief: upper left corner border and spandrel. A broad soft diagonal erasure channel sweeps lower left through exact centre to upper right; centre is emptiest. ~90% of medallion gone; only incomplete upper left rim arc survives at half strength. One small incomplete ornamental cluster near lower right border. ~50% of rug completely plain. No motif is complete; all dissolve gradually into plain pile. Lost symmetry sensed but never fully seen. Single warm low sidelight from left at ~12, casting soft shallow shadows rightward. Three undyed finishes: matte cloudy wool (erased areas), dense raised high twist wool (~2 mm, surviving ornament), restrained silk glints (strongest areas only). Rounded bevel transitions, natural abrash, visible hand knotted grain, archaeological atmosphere. Photorealistic textile photography, no coloured yarn. Rug fills frame, minimal neutral floor visible.