Iran - Andrew Burke [40]
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In 2007 the world’s largest hand-woven carpet was unveiled in Tehran. The green-coloured carpet has an area of 1020 sq m and was woven for a mosque in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
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In general, these designs are classified as either ‘tribal’ or ‘city’ carpets. Tribal designs vary greatly depending on their origin (see Know Your Persian Rugs, Click here), but are typically less ornate. ‘City carpets’ are the classic Persian rugs you’ll have seen across the world, usually highly ornate floral designs around one or more medallions.
Most Iranians aspire to own fine, formal city rugs of Tabriz, Esfahan, Kashan, Qom or Kerman. They consider tribal carpets the work of peasants, and those who cannot afford hand-woven city carpets would buy a carpet made on a machine using chemical dyes and inferior wool (or even synthetic fibres) before they’d buy a tribal carpet.
WEAVING
Most handmade carpets are woven from wool. The wool is spun, usually by hand, and then rinsed, washed, dried and dyed. Each rug is woven around a vertical (warp) and horizontal (weft) foundation, usually made of cotton – the skeleton of the rug.
The best are made from sheep wool, with quality varying from region to region. Occasionally goat or camel hair is used, usually by tribal weavers in the warps or selvedges (edge bindings) of rugs, kilims or saddle bags to give them strength. Silk carpets are magnificent but they’re largely decorative, while wool and silk mixtures are more practical and look beautiful. Weavers are often, but not always, women.
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Oriental Rugs in Colour, by Preben Liebetrau, is probably the most useful carpet guide to carry around. This pocket-sized book includes an explanation of the carpets and rugs of Iran and Turkey.
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Dyes
Dyeing is often done in large vats in small, old-style buildings in the older parts of towns; walk the old town streets of Kashan, in particular, to see it in action. The dyes themselves are the product of centuries of innovation and experimentation. Colours are extracted from natural sources available locally, including plants (such as herbs, vegetables and fruit skins), insects and even shellfish.
In 1859 chemical dyes such as aniline and chrome were introduced. They caught on quickly because they were cheap and easy to use, though rarely actually better. Not everyone abandoned the old ways, however, and indeed some weavers, notably those in the Chahar Mahal-va Bakhtiari region west of Esfahan, have continued using natural dyes almost uninterrupted to the present day.
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MEASURING UP
Persian carpets can be woven to almost any size, from modest little prayer rugs (usually about 1.5m x 1m) to the vast works decorating the last shah’s Niyavaran Palace in Tehran. However, as you explore the bazaars and carpet shops, sipping tea and watching rug after rug being dramatically unfurled for your perusal, you’ll find most are one or another standard size. Other common sizes are 3m x 2m and 4m x 3m. Anything larger than this is usually made to order. The following dimensions (length by width) are approximate:
Balisht or phosti – cushion sized
Ja Namaz or namazlik – prayer rug, 1.5m x 1m
Kenareh – 3m x 1m
Mian farsh – 3m long and up to 2.5m wide
Kellegi – 3.5m x 2m
The following rugs are measured using an old Persian linear measure called a zar.
Zarcharak – 1.25 zars or 1.5m x 1m
Zaronim – 1.5 zars or 2m x 1m
Dozar – two zars or 2m x 1.5m
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Today Iranian rug producers big and small are turning back to natural dyes because buyers in the West are more attracted to their subtle, pleasing shades. The Iranian government is encouraging the producers with subsidies and concessions.
Looms
Traditionally, nomadic carpet-weavers used horizontal looms, which are lightweight and transportable. Their carpets and rugs were less detailed and refined