What is a nomadic rug?

A nomadic rug is made on a horizontal loom that a family can take with them between summer and winter pastures. The weaver sits on the part already knotted and works without a design. This is where the small irregularities in shape and pattern come from; they are part of the character and show genuine handwork. The Gashgai in Fars knot rows of diamonds and medallions with the animals of their herds, the Afshar around Kerman an elongated central field with several medallions. Our guides The Gashgai Nomads and Their Weaving and The Zagros Mountains tell more about their lives.

How do village rugs differ from city rugs?

Village rugs carry the signature of their place. Around Hamadan, village follows village, each with its own language of colour and form, sometimes floral, sometimes geometric. City rugs such as Nain or Isfahan, by contrast, follow a drawn design and are knotted much more finely. According to our product data, our nomadic and village rugs usually have 160,000 to 360,000 knots per square metre, with a pile of 7 to 12 mm. Hand-spun wool never takes the dye completely evenly; this Abrash, a subtle play of colour, makes every village rug an honest piece of handwork.

They are robust enough for hallways, living rooms and homes with children. In a hallway, give the rug room to breathe: leave at least a hand’s width to the wall, ideally one to two. Tip: with ‘View in your room’ on the product page, you can use your smartphone to place any rug in your room at full size.