A HISTORY OF PERSIAN CARPET
To look at a Persian carpet is to gaze into a world
of artistic magnificence nurtured for more than 2,500 years. The
Iranians were among the first carpet weavers of the ancient
civilisations and, through centuries of creativity and ingenuity
building upon the talents of the past, achieved a unique degree of
excellence. The carpet is the finest and most exquisite form of
expression an Iranian can find and the best specimens available today
rank amongst the highest level of art ever attained by mankind. Even
today, with Iranians increasingly being swallowed up in the whirlpool of
a fast expanding industrial, urban society, the Persian association with
the carpet is as strong as ever. An Iranian 's home is bare and soulless
without it, a reflection on the deep rooted bond between the people and
their national art. To trace the history of the Persian carpet is to
follow a path of cultural growth of one of the greatest civilisations
the world has ever known. From being simply articles of need, as pure
and simple floor and entrance coverings to protect the nomadic tribesmen
from the cold and damp, the increasing beauty of the carpets found them
new owners - kings and noblemen, those who looked for signs of wealth or
adornment for fine buildings. Many people in Iran have invested their
whole wealth in Persian carpels - often referred to as an Iranian 's
stocks and shares - and there are underground storage areas in Tehran's
bazaar that are full of fine specimens, kept as investments by shrewd
businessmen. And for many centuries, of course, the Persian carpet has
received international acknowledgment for its artistic splendour. In
palaces, famous buildings, rich homes and museums throughout the world a
Persian carpel is amongst the most treasured possessions. Thus, today
Iran produces more carpels than all the other carpel making centres of
the world put together. The element of luxury with which the Persian
carpet is associated today provides a marked contrast with its humble
beginnings among the nomadic tribes that at one lime wandered ihe great
expanse of Persia in search of their livelihood. Then, it was an article
of necessity to protect the tribes from the bitterly cold winters of the
country. But out of necessity was born art. Through their bright colours
and magical designs, the floor and entrance coverings that protected the
tribesmen from the ravages of the weather also brought gay relief to
their dour and hardy lives. In those early days the size of the carpet
was often small, dependant upon the size of the tent or room in which
the people lived. Besides being an article of furniture, the carpet was
also a form of writing for the illiterate tribesmen, setting down their
fortunes and setbacks, their aspirations and joys. It also came to be
used as a prayer mat by thousands of Muslim believers. Thus began a
process of fatheres handing down their skills to their sons, who built
on those skills and in turn handed down the closely guarded family
secrets to their offsprings. To make a carpet in those days required
tremendous perseverance. Even when carpet making developed to the stage
of workshops, with several employees working on the same carpet, it was
a question of months and often years of painstaking work. The leader
would dictate throuth a series of / chants to the other workers the
colour of the individual strands of wool to be knotted. When the time
came for the tribe to move on, the loom had to be dismantled and the
unfinished carpet folded as best they could. The following season it had
to be put again at some new oasis. Althoulh cotton came to be used for
the warp and the weft of the carpet, the herds of sheep that surrounded
the tribes in their wanderings provided the basic material, wool. The
cold mountain climate provided an added advantage in that the wool was
finer and had longer fibres than wool from sheep in warmer climes. A key
feature in making the carpets was the bright colours used to form the
instricate designs. The manufacture of dyes involved well kept secrets
handed down throuth the generations. Insects, plants, roots, barks and
other substances found outside the tents and in their wanderings were
all used by the ingenious tribesmen. Before the dyeing process could
begin, however, the wool had to be washed and dried in the sun to bleach
it. The clean wool was then spun by hand. Since the tribes were
constantly on the move and had only small vessels in which to hold the
dyes, the dyers were unable to achieve a uniformity in shades, with yarn
displaying varying tones of the same colour. The wool was loosely dipped
into dyeing vats and left for a time thai could be judged only by the
expert craftsmen. Then the wool was left to hang without being sqeezcd,
which would have left an uneven colouring. Later the wool was dried in
the sun. Because the wool and cotton and silk used in marking the
carpels arc perishable, very few of the earliest carpets arc now in
cxistancc. The earliest knowen Persian carpet was dicovered by Russian
Professor Rudcnko in 1949 during excavations of burial mounds in the
Altai Mountains in Siberia. The carpet had been preserved purely by
chance. Soon after it had been placed in the burial mound, grave robbers
raided the mound. They ignored the carpet but, throulh the opening they
left, water poured into the mound and froze, thus protecting the carpet
from decay. Called the Paxyryk rug, the carpet has a woolen pile knotted
with Chiordes knot. Its central field is a deep red colour and it has
two wide borders, one depicting deer and the other Persian horseman. It
dates from the fifth century B.C. and is now kept in the Hermitage
Museum of Leningrad. Another rug found in the same area, this time with
a Senneh knot, dates to the first century B.C. But, long before that,
historical records show that the court of Cyrus the Great, who founded
the Persian monarchy over 2,500 years ago, was bedecked by magnificent
carpets. Classical tales recount how Alexander the Great found carpets
of a very fine fabric in Cyrus tomp. The next great period in the
history of Persian carpets came during the sassanian dynasty, from the
third to the seventh century A.D. By the 6th century Persian carpels had
won international prestige and were being exported to distant lands. And
in this time was created one great carpet which was a spectacle of
overwhelming splendour. The spring or winter carpet of Khosrow was made
for the huge audience hall of the palace at Ctesiphon and depicted a
formal garden. It held a political significance as an indication of the
power and the resources of the king and its beauty signified the divine
role of the king. When the Arabs defeated the Persians and took
Ctesiphon, they caricd off the carpet as part of thier fabulous booty
and it was eventually cut up into small fragments and divided among the
victorious soldiers. Yet its magnificance lived on, inspiring subsequent
history, poetry and art and helping to sustain Persian morale for
centuries. It also provided a source of inspiration for subsequent
carpets but, althouth many have tried, not even the most skilled have
been able to equal its spellbinding design. After the fall of the
Sassanian dynasty, from the seventh to the twelfth centuries, Persian
carpet weaving become a rather spasmodic industry in many parts,
althoulh there is evidence of a large industry surviving on the South
Caspian coast in Gilan and Mazandaran in the eighth and ninth centuries
with a sizeable export of prayer rugs. Organized production was also
reported in the northwest towns of Bargari, Mukhan, Arjig, Nachshirvan
and Khoy and in the south, in Khuzestan and Pars. Certainly when the
Mongols invaded the country in the 13th century they found many Persian
homes and tents boasting local carpets. But for the next two centuries,
the artistic life of the country, including carpet weaving, declined
under the influence of the devastation wreaked by the Mongols. But,
among his few graces, the conqueror Tamerlane spared artisans from his
bloody havoc and had them sent to his palaces in Turkistan. Under his
successor art began to flourish once more. His son Shah Rokh put a great
emphasis on Persian carpets and outstanding specimens began to appear
once more from court subsidized looms. The lavish royal support
guaranteed the highest skills and the finest materials money could buy.
Once more the art was for a great climax. The climax came with the
Safavid dynasty in the 16th century. When Shah Ismail occupied the
throne in 1499 he began laying the foundation for what was to become a
national industry that was the envy of surrounding countries. The most
famous of the kings of this era. Shah Abbas, more than any one
transformed the industry, bringing it from the tents of the wandering
nomads into the towns and cities. In Isfahan, which he made his capital,
he established a royal carpet factory and hired artisans to prepare
designs to be made by master craftsmen. He charged officers of the crown
to ensure that the integrity of the industry was maintained and in this
period the art of carpet weaving once again achieved monumental
proportions. The best knowen carpets of the period, dated 1539, come
from the mosque of Ardebil and, in the opinion many experts, represent
the summit of achievement in carpet design. A complex star medallion
dominates a rich system of stems and blossoms on a vivid indigo field.
The larger of the two is now kept in London's Victoria and Albert
Museum while the other can be seen at the Los Angeles Country Museum.
Excellent silk animal rugs were woven in Kashan while, to the north of
Isfahan, weavers turned out the distinctive vase carpets. Rugs of great
beauty were also woven in Kerman, Yazd, Pars and khuzcstan. Shah Abbas
also developed the use of gold and silver thread carpet, culminating in
the great coronatio carpet now held in the Rosenburg Castle, Copenhagen,
which has a perfect velvet-like pile and gleaming gold background. These
carpets, of course, were made for the court and the great nobles, and
were protected as well as any golden treasure. They had special
custodians and, even when they were brought out for state and other
special occasions, were usually covered with another light fabric to
protect them from wear. Growing demand from the great royal courts of
Europe for these gold and silver threaded carpets led to a great export
industry. A large number went to Poland aftre King Sigmund specially
sent merchants to Persia to acquire them. King Louis XIV of France even
sent his own craftsmen to Persia to learn the trade. As the 17th century
wore on there was an increasing demand for luxury and refinement. A set
of silk carpets woven to surround the sacrophagus of Shah Abbas II
achieved such a rare quality that many mistook them for velvet. But they
were the last really high achievement in carpet making from that era in
Persian history. Somehow, inspiration steadily began to slacken and, as
the court became increasingly impoverished, the quality of the
craftsmanship began to fall away. When Shah Abbas\' capital city of
Isfahan was sacked in 1722 a magnificent period in the history not only
of carpet weaving but of art itself came dramatically to an end. The
great carpet weaving fell back into the hands of the wandering nomads
who had maintained their centuries-old traditions and skills, apart from
a few centres, principally Josheghan, Kerman, Mashad and Azarbaijan.
Even the low school rugs these centres produced were in danger of being
ruined as an art by the growing demand from the West in the mid 19th
century for quantity at the expense of quality. Cheap dyes, low quality
wool, chemical washing and even meaningless designs supplied by the
European importers brought theindustry almost to its knees. After
sporadic and largely an successful efforts to stop the rot, the
gavcrnement took drastic action and confiscated the carpets in which
cheap days and low quality wool had been used. The dye Masters soon came
to their senses, with it began a new era of revival for the carpet
crafts. The Iran Carpet Company and a school of design were stablished
in Tehran to restore the integrity of Art and to study and buid the
great works of the 15th and 16th centuries.
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TECHNIQUES ,...
A special characteristic of all Persian carpets is that they
are hand-knotted. The fabric is composed of three parts: the warp, the
pile, and the weft. The warp is the combination of threads, usually of
cotton, which are arranged vertically in parallel lines between the two
ends of the loom. The pile is the visible surface of the carpet; it is
made up of short threads, usually of wool knotted on to the warp. The
knots are placed in rows across the width of the carpet, never along the
length. The weft consists of one or more threads, nearly always of
cotton, woven between one row of knots and the next.
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LOOMS AND TOOLS
As we have said. Oriental carpets are made entirely by hand.
Apart from the great skill and patience of the craftsman, all that their
manufacture requires is a loom and a few rudimentary tools. The looms
may be divided into four types: horizontal, fixed vertical, Tabriz type
vertical, and vertical with roller beam. The horizontal loom, the most
primitive of the four, is very similar to the looms used by nomads to
make the first carpets which were intended to take the place of animals
skins on the floor of their tents. Carpets, in fact, answered both the
aesthetic and functional needs of these tribes better than skins. The
horizontal loom consists of just two wooden beams between which the warp
threads are stretched lengthwise. During manufacture, these warp threads
are held in tension between the two beams by means of two posts tied to
the ends of each beam and fixed into the ground. When the tribe wished
to move on, all that was needed was to remove the two posts and roll up
the made-up part of the carpel and the warp threads around the two beams
of the loom. The horizontal loom was used solely by nomadic tribes. The
fixed vertical loom is also known as the village loom because it is used
almost exclusively in small communities. It consists of two parallel
round beams held up by two vertical supports. The warp threads are
stretched between the two beamd and the knotting of the carpet is always
begun from the bottom. The craftsman works seated on a board hooked on
to the rungs of a ladder fixed to the vertical supports of the loom. As
the work proceeds, the board is raised from rung to rung so that the
worker is always at the same height as the knots. Carpets made on this
type of loom are at most the same length as the loom itself, that is, no
more than about nine feet. It is possible to make longer carpets by
rolling the completed work around the lower beam and stretching a second
set of warp threads above on the upper beam. This method, however, does
not give good rusults and the two parts of the carpet often do not
match. One development of the fixed vertical loom is the so-called
Tabriz loom invented by the craftsmen of that town, which is now very
widely used, particularly in the large carpet-making centres of Iran. In
this type of loom the warp threads run from the upper beam to the lower,
passing below it and going back to the upper beam. This forms two
parallel planes of warp, one in front and one behind. The carpet made on
the front warp threads is passed under the low beam and up the back of
the loom; at the same time, from the back the warp threads pass around
to the front of the loom. This system enables a carpet to be made twice
the length of the height of the loom. The fourth type of loom with
roller beams is a further development of the vertical loom. All the warp
threads needed to make the carpet are rolled on to the upper beam, and
the carpet is rolled on to the lower beam as it is completed. With this
type of loom it is possible to make carpets of any length. The tools
used in the making of carpets are few and simple. They are a knife, a
beater, and shears. The knife is used to cut the threads of the knot. It
is entirely of metal and may have a hook at the end of the blade to
assist in the formation of the knot. (This type of knife is used
particularly by the craftsmen of Tabriz.) The beater consists of a
series of metal blades, the points of which are splayed to form a set of
teeth. It is used to tighten the threads of the weft against a line of
knots. The wide-bladed flat shears are used to clip the pile of the
carpet.
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THE RAW MATERIALS
There are three materials used in the manufacture of
carpets-wool, silk, and cotton. Wool and silk are primarily used for the
knots which form the pile, and are more rarely employed as warp or weft
threads, for which cotton is mostly used. Chiefly sheep's wool is used,
but there is also a fairly widespread use of camelhair, used for the
most part in its natural colour. The employment of goat's hair is,
however, much rarer. As far as sheep's wool or possibly lamb's wool is
concerned, the long-staple kinds are, of course, preferred. Wool from
the shoulder and flank of the animal is best, while the poorer quality
wool comes from the legs and belly. The quality varies from place to
place, the wool from mountain sheep living at low temperatures being
considered to be the best. Khorassan wool is also much appreciated. Woll
obtained by combing the sheep's fleece in the winter and shearing it in
spring is known as kurk, and is of the highest quality. Poorer quality
wool is called tabechi and is obtained from the fleece of dead animals.
Lime is used in this operation, the wool is stiff, dull and rough, and
becomes lifeless when dyed. Before being used, the wool must be
carefully scoured in order to remove all traces of grease. The more it
is washed, the purer and more vivid are the colours when it is dyed.
Among the most widely used qualities of wool are those spun by the
nomadic Luri and Kurd tribes and used not only for carpets emanating
from these two provinces but also for many carpets from western Persia.
In some specimens with a wool pile, particularly those currently being
produced at Qum and Nain, silk is also used to heighten the effect of
the decoration. Some rare carpets of a particularly sophisticated kind
have a silk pile. These are usually carpets made to order. The
best-known centre for this type of work is Kashan. Cotton is used
exclusively for warp and weft threads, although an exception to this
must be made in reference to some Turkish specimens, in particular those
from kayseri where white cotton is used in the pile for the decoration
of some motifs with a similar result to that achieved with silk. Cotton
is grown and spun in most of the places where the carpets come from. In
antique carpets the warp and weft threads were nearly always in wool, or
in silk in the specimens where the pile was silk also. Sometimes, for
decorative reasons, silver, or silver-gilt thread was also used. In
present-day manufacture, with the exception of nomad carpets which are
entirely of wool, the warp and weft are in cotton and the results
justify its use. In fact, cotton has less tendency to give and slacken
than wool, and consequently when cotton is used, one does not find the
unevenness typical of all-wool carpets. Besides, as cotton is stiffer
than wool, the carpet lies better on the floor.
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COLOURANTS
Next comes the matter of colours, that amazing artist's palette
so typical of Persian carpet production. Dyeing is a very delicate
process and is preceded by and alum bath which acts as a mordant. The
thread is then immersed in a dye bath where it remains for a period
ranging from a few hours to a few days according to the results
required. Finally, it is put out to dry in the sun. Aniline was
discovered in 1856, and its range of colours only reached Persia at the
very end of the last century. Until the advent of these artificial
colourants, dyers used nothing but natural ones, nearly all of them
vegetable dyes. The exception to this among the most widely used
colourants was the red obtained from the cochineal bug, an insect
prevalent in India. Persian dyers become very famous over the centuries
for their success in obtaining a seemingly inexhaustible range of
colours from vegetable sources. Red, for example, was obtained not only
from the cochineal bug but also from the root of the madder, a plant
which grows wild in many parts of Persia. Other shades of red were
obtained from other insects, while the pinkish-red and reddish-brown
shades were the result of mixing whey with the normal red to produce a
variety of shades of the same colour according to the amounts added.
Blue was obtained from the indigo plant, or more precisely, from the
leaves of that plant. A very dark shade of blue, almost black, resulted
from the use of the indigo which became encrusted on the inside of the
fermentation vats. Yellow was obtained either from vine leaves or from a
plant indigenous to the desert regions, or from weld which gives a
beautiful saffron colour. Today, however, yellow obtained from weld is
only rarely used, partly because it has become very expensive and partly
because the more delicate tints arc not perfectly fast. Green was
obtained by mixing yellow and light blue which came from copper sulphate.
Black came cither from using the natural wool of black sheep or camels,
or by dyeing grey wool with ferrous oxide found in the galls on oak
trees. Finally, the greys browns were derived either from the natural
colour of the wool or from dyeing carried out with ingredients taken
from walnut shells. The use of ferrous oxide had the inconvenience of
weakening the pile. In several old carpets, one can see where the black
areas have become very worn and this creates a curious relief effect.
This defect can also be seen in the green areas because of the use of
copper sulphate. The creation of the colours by means of natural dyes is
therefore very dependent upon the competence and skill of the dyers. The
type of mordant and the hardness of the water used also have their
effect. The water at Tabriz, for example, gives a certain dullness to
the dyed wool. When, however, between Ihc last decade of the nineteenth
century and the beginning of the twentieth century, artificial
colourants (the whole range of aniline colours) made their appearance in
Persia, dyers abandoned the old traditions in favour of the much less
costly new colours. Quality suffered and for a long time the fame of
Persian carpets declined also, because the aniline colours gave tints
which did not match and moreover had a tendency to discolour. The
government itself had to intervene to preserve the quality by imposing
very severe penalties against the importing and use of aniline
dyes.Persian dyers have been able to profit from the later progress in
the chemical field and today, while the nomads lend still to use the
natural colours exclusively for their dyes, town craftsmen and lagrc
workshops use many synthetic chromcbascd colours which do not have the
defects encountered in the aniline dyes. Chemistry also serves the
creators of Persian carpets by providing the means of toning down the
colours. This is called a reduction wash and is a chemical process which
blends and softens the colours, making them more like the colours of
antique carpets. It is a delicate operation which does not affect the
durability and strength of the carpet, and this is all the more reason
for purchasing carpets of a particular kind from a source where the
processes used have been perfected from all points of view. Often one
finds a Persian carpet which at first sight appears to have a defector a
rare effect according to one's point of view-but which is, however, a
characteristic peculiarity. Certain designs or backgrounds begun in one
shade of colour arc continued in the same colour but in a slightly
different shade, or simply with another colour. These discrepancies in
colour arc called abrash. Abrash are, in fact, those variations of
colour or shade which are particularly to be found in antique carpets.
The presence of abrash is proof that the carpet was dyed with vegetable
colourants. Indeed, with vegetable dyes it is very difficult to achieve
two identical shades of the same colour.
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KNOTS
As was pointed out at the beginning of the chapter, hand-knotting
is the essential characteristic of all Oriental carpets. The knots used
arc of two different kinds: the Turkish or Ghiordes, and the Persian or
Senneh. The use of Turkish or Persian to distinguish the two different
types of knot avoids confusion because these terms refer to the areas
where the type of knot is mostly used. The Turkish knot is prevalent in
Turkey and the Caucasus. The Persian knot is used mainly in Persia
(although oddly enough, in the town of Scnnch which gave its name to the
Persian knot, it is the Turkish knot which is mainly used for
carpet-making). In the Turkish knot the yarn is taken twice around two
adjacent warp threads and the ends are drawn out between these two
threads, (see sketch on opposite page). In the Persian knot the wool
thread forms a single turn about the warp thread. One end comes out over
this thread and the other over the next warp thread. By parting the pile
of the carpet, it is possible to sec a line of knots and determine
whether Turkish or Persian knots were used. With Turkish knots two ends
come out on lop of the knot, while in Persian knots one comes out at the
top and the other is at the side.
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THE WARP
As explained at the beginning of the chapter, the warp is the
combination of threads stretched between the two extremities of the
loom, around which the knots which form the pile are lied. Warp threads
are usually of cotton. In nomad carpets the warp is of wood. The warp
can be of silk in those rare carpets which arc made solely of this
material. The fringes of the carpel arc the ends of the warp threads.
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THE WEFT
The weft is formed by the thread or group of threads situated
between one line of knots and the next. The weft is of cotton, wool or
silk according to the material used for the warp. The function of the
weft is to hold the knots in parallel lines and to strengthen the fabric
of the carpet. In most carpets the weft consists of two threads, one
loose and one tight, which are woven across the warp after each line of
knots. The weft threads are beaten in against each row of knots with a
comb beater.
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THE TECHNIQUE OF WEAVING CARPETS
A carpet is always begun at the lower edge with the selvedge. A
certain number of weft threads are woven across the vertical warp
threads so as to form a stout edging which will keep the carpet intact,
prevent fraying and keep the knots tight. When the selvedge (which
contains no knots) is finished, the knotting of the woollen pile threads
on to the warp begins. Each piece of wool is fixed on to two adjoining
warp threads in accordance with one of the two main techniques, Turkish
or Persian. It is obvious that the price of a carpet depends on the time
it takes to make, and, basically, upon the number of knots it contains.
It is for this reason that over-hasty and at times cunning craftsmen use
an unorthodox knotting technique. The practice of double-knotting called
jufti is, for example, common.This double-knotting means that the piece
of wool which should be knotted across two warp threads is knotted
across four. This technique diminishes the value of the carpet by
reducing the density of the pile, thus making the decorative motifs less
clear. All the work of knotting is done by hand by a trained and swift
craftsman. On average, a good craftsman can make from 10,000 to 14,000
knots in a day. This is a tremendous amount of work, even though the
resulting piece of carpel may seem modest in si/c. Consider, however,
that to make a medium quality carpel (at about 160 knots per square
inch) and measuring about six feet by nine feet at a rate of 10,000
knots per day takes a good five months, and that in a whole day's hard
work the carpet grows by less than an inch across the whole width. If
the same carpet had a knot density of only 32 knots to the square inch,
however, it could be finished in a month. After each knot is lied, the
carpet-maker pulls about 2.75 inches of the wool he has used away from
the knot in a downward direction. This not only tightens the knot but
also determines the direction of the pile. It is, in fact, a
characteristic of Persian carpets that they appear different from
different points of view and according to the way the light falls on the
pile. Thus, when one wants to lay a Persian carpel in a room, it is
important to try it out in different positions. Often a change of
position can achieve a truly astonishing change of effect. When he has
finished a row of knots across the whole width of the warp, the weaver
passes the weft thread in and out of each of the warp threads. Generally
there arc two weft threads between each row of knots, one light and the
other loose. The pile is given its first cropping after four or six
rowsof knots have been made. (Sometimes, however, each row is cut
individually.) The ends of the knots are kept fairly long (about 2.75
in) whilst knotting is in progress. The final cropping will not take
place until the carpet is finished. Specialized craftsmen are used for
this work as it is a very delicate operation and one which gives the
final touch to the work. As a rule, very fine carpels arc cropped very
close, while a deeper pile is left on carpets with a lower knot density
because if these carpets were close-cropped the poor quality of the
fabric would be revealed. The kinds of cropping differ according to
custom and the demands of the market. Nomads, for example, tend to
retain a thich pile: the town craftsmen to crop it while the American
market, which has a powerful influence on present-day Persian
production, demands carpels with a fairly deep pile. The miracle which
attends the birth of every Persian carpet begins therefore at the
knotting stage. Millions of differently coloured knots arc patiently
aligned one against the other to form the patterns and motifs -sometimes
geometric, sometimes floral- but always full of imagination and style.
Among the nomads, colours and designs often grow instinctively out of
the basic tradition. There is no prc-ordaincd plan -just a general idea
which lakes into account the shape of the carpet to be made, the symbols
which are to appear on il, and the colours available. All the rest is
imagination, whim, skill and the innate creativity of the nomad. In the
cities, however, both in family workshops and larger concerns, the
carpet is born of a precise project by specialized artists who create
the design on a squared cartoon on which each square represents a knot.
When the carpet is to be made by one person on his own, the cartoon is
fixed to the loom at the worker's eye level. When two or more people
are concerned in the task, one of them reads aloud the number of knots
of each colour. If you visit a Persian village, it is not at all unusual
to hear an endless, monotonous chant coming from a house, ... one red
knot, two blue knots, three red knots.... This is the voice of the
head of the family working at the loom with his son, one beside the
other, with half a carpet each. At a rate of a few seconds per knot, the
carpet grows like a great mosaic in which each knot corresponds to a tessera. In workshops where there are many workers, the weaving is led
by the ustad (master) who superintends the entire manufacture of the
carpet and is personally responsible for the most important parts of il.
The carpet is finished as il was begun, with a selvedge. When the last
line of knots is finished, weft threads are interwoven with the warp
threads so as to form a firm finish. The surplus warp threads on each
end of the carpet arc used for the fringe which can be twisted or more
often knotted. When the carpel is removed from the loom, il is given a
final cropping and is then washed. The point of the washing process is
to remove the stiffness from the carpel and to restore the wool and
colours to their full purity. The carpet is then spread out to dry in
the sun and this is the last test of colour fastness.
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DESIGNS
Persian carpet can be divided so far as design is concerned into two
main groups. Carpets with a geometric design and carpet with a
curvilinear, known as floral carpets.
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GEOMETRIC DESIGN CARPETS
All the carpets in this group decorated with linear elements
composed of vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines or formed by a
repetition of the same motifs. Carpets with geometric designs are woven
by nomadic tribes, with particular motives and designs. These motives
facilitates the attribution of a carpet to a particular tribe or place
of origin.
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PERSIAN CARPET DESIGN
The great feature of Persian design has always been its
intricate, symbolic patterns, which have fascinated experts and art
lovers throughout the world for centuries. Yet it is asserted by many
that the designs reflect not so much symbolism as the Persian's close
affinity with nature and a pure love of patterns as works of art. Nature
supplies the greatest inspiration to the carpet designer, although other
designs are adapted from such foreign sources as China and Arabia. In
all probability designs began hundreds of years ago with faithful
representations of trees, flowers, birds and clouds which, through the
creative and innovative genius of Persian art, became more and more
stylised with each succeeding generation. The most common motif for all
Persian rugs, especially the larger ones, is a large central medallion.
Yet, even if they are basically the same design, no two medallions are
ever exactly the same. Some experts believe that the medallion design
stems from the very religious nature of the weavers and that their
inspiration probably came from the domes of the mosques. In thinking of
patterns, the great Shah Abbas invariably springs to mind as the
inspiration for various patterns, all of which are inspired by the lily
often in an isolated central position linked only by delicate tendrils.
Another favourite is the pine or leaf pattern, a very graceful stem with
a slightly bent head, which proved the inspiration for the paisley
pattern, rather stereotyped and meaningless compared with its
instigator. The Herati pattern is also in rugs from all over Iran. It
derives from the town of Herat, now in Afghanistan but once part of the
Persian empire. A central diamond shaped figure framed by four slightly
curling leaves, is repeated several times. The Kurds use a similar
pattern known as Mina Khani. Weavers in Kerman sometimes include
portraits in their designs, including such European celebrities as
Napoleon and, of course, the Shahs and wealthy people of Iran. The Iran
Carpet Company has attempted to classify Persian carpet designs and to
this end it has carried out studies of thousands of carpets. The results
have shown that alterations were introduced into almost all original
designs. In its classification, the company has called the original
design the "main pattern" and the derivatives the "sub-patterns". There
are 19 groups of main patterns together with their sub-patterns.
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GROUP 1 - Patterns of Historic
Monuments and Islamic Buildings
In creating these patterns, the designers have been inspired by the
tilcwork, structure and geometric
shapes of ancient buildings. From the original patterns in this group,
artists have made many
sub-patterns, some of which are called Sheikh Loifollah, Mehrabi Kufi,
Kabood Mosque, Sheikh Safi
Shrine, Entrance to Mahroug Shrine, Gonbad Gaboos, Esfahan Shah Mosque,
Takhte Jamshid
(Perscpolis), Taghe Bostan, Taghe Kasra (Eyvane Madacn) and Zire Khaki.
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GROUP 2 - Shah Abbassi Patterns
In this group, the principal motif - a special flower known in Iran as
Shah Abbassi - is set off by other
florals and leaves in the background and border. Sub-patterns include:
Allover, Medallion, Tree,
Animal, Sheikh Safi, Embellished Shah Abbassi, Medallion, Bush and Plain
Ground.
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GROUP 3 - Spiral Patterns
The original of this group is composed of spiraling branches surrounded
by leaves. The end of each
branch splits to resemble the jaws of a dragon. The branches are
ornamented with foliate spurs known
as Eslimis. Among the sub-patterns of this group are Allover Spiral,
Interconnected Spiral, Broken
Spiral, and Medallion Spiral.
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GROUP 4 - Allover Patterns
All parts of Allover designs arc usually related and connected. In the
drawing of such designs, the
designer's pen is never lifted but continues from beginning to end, with
the exception of a pattern in
which brandies and leaves are scattered in the background. For this
reason, the name Afshan - Allover
- has been given to this group. Among the numerous variations are
Allover Spiral, Allover Khatai,
Allover Interconnected, Allover Broken, Allover Pomegranate Flower,
Allover Twisted Branch, Allover
Floral Bouquet, Allover Animal, Allover Medallion.
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GROUP 5 - Derivative Patterns
Some of these patterns resemble designs woven in the border areas of
Iran. Careful study shows that
some of them were originally Persian and borrowed by our neighbors.
Well-known patterns in this
group are Afghani, Caucasian and Gobelin.
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GROUP 6 - Interconnected Patterns
When a small piece of design is repeated and connected throughout the
length and breadth of a carpet,
the resulting pattern is called Bandi (interconnected). Subpatterns of
this group are many: Interconnected
Spiral, Interconnected Ivy, Interconnected Broken, Interconnected
Katibeh, Interconnected Mostowfi,
Interconnected Varamin, Interconnected Minakhani, Interconnected
Mud-brick Mold or Diamond,
Interconnected Panel, Interconnected Tree, Interconnected Milk and
Sugar, Interconnected Armlet,
Interconnected Cedar or Mulla Nasreddin, Interconnected Bakhtiari,
Interconnected Majlessi,
Interconnected Rope, Interconnected Bunch of Grapes, Interconnected Deer
Horn, Interconnected Shiraz Inlay, and Interconnected Floral Bouquet.
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GROUP 7 - Paisley Patterns
The basis of these designs is the head-bent paisley motif common in both
Indian and Iranian patterns
from olden times. In Persian carpets, the design takes different shapes
and sizes, some of the
best-known sub-patterns being Tufted Paisley, Deer Horn Paisley, Tcrmeh
Paisley, Saraband Paisley,
Kherghei Paisley, Esfahan Pcncasc Paisley, Kordcstani Paisley, Eightbush
Paisley, Broken Mir Paisley,
Sanandaj Paisley, Afshari Paisley and Armlet Paisley.
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GROUP 8 - Tree Patterns
Although stylized branches are a common motif in Persian carpel designs,
the socalled Tree patterns are
distinctive for their close resemblance to natural forms. Among the
sub-patterns are Animal Tree,
Green Field Tree, Panel Tree, Cedar Tree and Vase Tree.
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GROUP 9 - Turkoman Patterns (Bokharas)
Incorporating geometrical shapes and broken lines, Turkoman patterns are
of the nomadic tribal
type-products of the weaver's imagination rather than reproductions of
drawn designs. Sub-patterns of
this group are known as Turkoman Ghabc Yamouti, Comb Turkoman, Ghazel
Goz Turkoman, Akhal
Turkoman, Four-Panel Turkoman, Saddlebag Turkoman and Spoon Turkoman.
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GROUP 10 - Hunting Ground Patterns
As with the tree patterns, the animals depicted in these carpets are
lifelike. Sub-patterns include Tree
Hunting Ground, Panel Hunting Ground, Medallion Hunting Ground and
Allover Hunting Ground.
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GROUP 11 - Panel Patterns
The basis of this design is a multi-sided panel motif. Sub-patterns are
Spiral Panel, Koran Panel and
Column Panel.
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GROUP 12 - European Flower Patterns
These patterns are compositions of original Persian designs with roses
in light and dark colours.
Sub-patterns include Rose, Bijar Flower, Mostowfi Flower, Panel Flower,
Flower Bouqet, and Rose and
Nightingale.
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GROUP 13 - Vase Patterns
In these patterns, vases are used in different sizes: a large vase may
cover the whole carpet or a small
vase may be repeated throughout the ground. Among the many sub-patterns
are Khatai Vase, Two-Way
Vase, Mehrabi Vase, Allover Vase, Chain Vase, Haji Khanom Vase, Repeated
Vase, Scarf Medallion
and Vase, and One-way Vase.
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GROUP 14 - Intertwined Fish Patterns
Although varied and enriched by modern designers, this pattern,
originally a product of the nomadic
imagination, retains its tribal character. First woven in Birjand in the
province of Khorassan, the design
spread to become common as far away as Hamadan and Azerbaijan, where
each area made its own
distinctive alterations. Hence, we have Herat Fish, Farahan and Beehive
Fish, Sennch (Sanadaj) or
Kurdestan Fish, Tiny Fish, Fragmented Fish and Interconnected Fish.
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GROUP 15 - Mehrab Patterns
The original pattern represents the place in a mosque where the prayer
leader stands and is
ornamented with pillars, chandeliers and florals. Among the sub-patterns
are Tree Mehrab,
Vase-Column Mehrab, Chandelier Mehrab, Vase Mehrab and Landscape Mehrab.
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GROUP 16 - Striped (Moharramat) Patterns
This name is applied to designs which are repeated in stripes running
the length of a carpet, each stripe
having its own special motifs and colours. Some places in Iran, this
pattern is called Ghalamdani
(Pencase). Sub-patterns include Overall Pencase, Tiny Flower (with one
background colour) and Paisley
(with different background colours).
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GROUP 17 - Geometrical Patterns
These patterns have lines and geometrical shapes such as polygons, in
contrast to the majority of
Persian designs which have lines moving in curves and circles.
Sub-patterns are Geometrical Connected
Panel, Geometrical Medallion, Striped Geometrical, Geometrical Scarf
Medallion Plain Ground
Geometrical, Khatai Geometrical, Star or Mosaic Geometrical, Shiraz
Khatam Geometrical, and
Josheghan Geometrical.
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GROUP 18 - Tribal Patterns
The oldest and most original of Persian carpet-patterns, these elegantly
simple creations of the tribal
imagination were inspired by their natural surroundings. Transferred by
designers from one region to
another all over Iran, most of the patterns are named for the places
they were first woven or for the
influential individuals who ordered the weaving done. The oldest and
most famous sub-patterns in the
group are Heibatloo (associated with Abadeh and Fars Province),
Ghashghai Paisley, Afshari, Khatouni,
Ardebil, Mazlaghan, Khamseh, Saveh, Tafresh, Heris, Mehraban, Goravan,
Zanjan, Mcshkin, Bakhliari,
Sari, Koravi, Yalmaz, Gonabad, Sistan, Ferdows, Salarkhani, Yaghub
Khani, Sangchubi, Ali Mirzai,
Janbcggy, Prayer Rug, Javin, Musaabad, Veece, Gharachch, Senneh, Floral
Bouqcl and Baluchcsta
