Persia / Iran Rugs

What is an antique Persian rug?

An antique Persian rug is a hand-knotted carpet woven in Persia, modern Iran, roughly 100 years ago or more, from hand-spun wool or silk and colored with natural dyes. Most antique Persian rugs on the market come from the great revival that Western demand set off in the late 19th century. Every Persian rug is an Oriental rug, but the wider term also covers Turkish, Caucasian and Chinese weaving. For history, dating and value in depth, read our antique Persian rugs guide and the longer rugs of Persia and Iran overview.

What are the main types of Persian rugs?

Persian rugs are named for the city, district or tribe that wove them, and each name carries a recognizable design dialect, palette and structure. These are the groups you will meet most often in our collection.

• Tabriz. The city of precision in northwest Persia, with the widest design range of any Persian city: formal medallions, Herati fields, Shah Abbas palmettes, pictorial and garden carpets. See our antique Tabriz rugs guide.
• Heriz and Serapi. Room-size village carpets from the Heriz district with a bold geometric medallion, brick red field and very durable construction. Serapi is the American trade name for the older, finer grade, generally woven before about 1900. See the Heriz guide and our Serapi page.
• Sultanabad. Large-scale, softly drawn floral carpets from the district around Arak, designed from the outset for big Western rooms. Mahal and Ziegler are grade and commission names within the same district. See the Sultanabad guide.
• Kashan. A byword for refinement: dense asymmetrical knotting, soft kork wool, and diamond medallions on scrolling vines in deep reds, blues and ivory. See the Kashan guide.
• Kerman. Finely drawn florals in a soft pastel palette with an unusually supple handle, from southeast Persia. Lavar is the trade term for the finest grade. See the Kerman guide.
• Sarouk and Farahan. The name covers both the fine 19th century weaving of the Farahan plain and the heavy rose-ground carpets exported to America between the wars. Our Sarouk guide separates the two.
• Village and tribal weaving. Malayer from the Hamadan region, Bidjar with its very dense, heavy weave, Kurdish runners, Bakshaish, the older and most abstract cousin of Heriz, and Baluch, Bakhtiari and Afshar tribal rugs. See our Malayer and Kurdish guides.

How can you tell if a Persian rug is antique?

Turn it over first. On a genuine hand-knotted Persian rug the design is clearly visible on the back and the rows of knots are slightly irregular; a machine-made rug shows a uniform grid, and a hand-tufted rug hides a glued back under a fabric cover. Then check the rest:

• Fringe and sides. The fringe is the end of the warp threads that run through the rug, never a strip sewn on afterward, and the long sides show a hand-wrapped selvage.
• Dyes. Madder reds, indigo blues and vegetal yellows mellow into harmony and show abrash. Harsh orange, chemical pink or flat, uniform color points to later production. Our natural vs synthetic dyes guide gives tests you can run in daylight.
• Wear and handle. Real age shows as wear that follows the traffic of a room and a supple, cloth-like handle, not an engineered, evenly distressed surface.
• Structure. Knot type, knot count and foundation help place a rug. See our guides to rug knots and KPSI and foundations, warps and wefts.

In the trade, a rug 100 years old or more is an antique, and 50 to 99 years is semi-antique. Our guide to antique vs vintage vs new rugs explains how age is established.

How do you decorate with an antique Persian rug?

Choose the type by the room and the mood: finely drawn city rugs suit formal living and dining rooms, room-size Heriz and Sultanabad carpets anchor both traditional and modern interiors, and village and tribal rugs bring warmth to studies, bedrooms and hallways.

• Living rooms. A 9 x 12 or 10 x 14 carpet large enough for at least the front legs of the seating to sit on the rug. Sultanabad's large-scale drawing reads calmly under furniture.
• Dining rooms. An all-over pattern such as a Herati field or a Sultanabad floral stays visible around the table, where a central medallion would be hidden.
• Hallways and entries. Persian runners are plentiful, with more than 180 in stock. Dense, heavy weaves such as Bidjar and sturdy Kurdish runners stand up to traffic.
• Large rooms. We hold more than 180 oversized Persian carpets and more than 50 at 12 x 18. See large antique rugs, 12 x 18 and bigger.
• Measure before you fall in love. Our rug size guide explains how to measure, and every listing gives the measured size.

How do you care for an antique Persian rug?

Use a good rug pad, rotate the rug once or twice a year, vacuum gently without a beater bar, keep it out of prolonged direct sunlight, and have it hand washed by a rug specialist rather than a general carpet cleaner. Persian rugs were woven to be walked on, and with that routine they last for generations.

• Spills. Blot at once with plain water, never rub or soak, and ask a specialist before trying a home remedy.
• Professional washing. Grit settles deep in the pile and wears the knots from inside. Our rug cleaning service in Manhattan washes hand-knotted rugs with a pH-balanced process.
• Moths. Moth larvae feed on wool and silk in dark, undisturbed places such as under a sofa or bed. Check those areas occasionally, and consider our moth-proofing service, which washes the rug first and then treats the fibers.
• Shape. A rug that has pulled out of square can be corrected with blocking and stretching.

Glossary of antique Persian rug terms

These are the terms you will meet most often in our listings and guides for Persian rugs.

Abrash

Gentle horizontal bands of tonal variation within a single color, left where the weaver moved to a new dye lot. A sign of hand-dyed wool, not a defect.

Senneh knot

The asymmetrical or Persian knot, used in most Persian city workshops. Tabriz is the main exception, using the symmetrical Turkish knot.

Herati (mahi)

An all-over repeat of a small rosette framed by curved leaves, often called the fish pattern. Common in Farahan, Malayer, Senneh and Tabriz weaving.

Boteh

The teardrop or paisley motif, repeated across the field of many village and town rugs.

Serapi

An American trade name for the older, finer grade of Heriz weaving, generally before about 1900, with more spacious drawing and softer color. Read about Serapi rugs.

Kork wool

Soft, lustrous wool from the underbelly and shoulders of the sheep, associated with fine Kashan carpets.

Mohtasham

The name given to the finest grade of late 19th century Kashan carpets, associated with the workshop tradition of Hajji Mollah Mohtasham.

Ziegler

Sultanabad carpets made under Ziegler and Company, the Manchester firm that set up in the district in the 1880s and supplied designs for European and American interiors.

Mahal

A trade term for the coarser, generally later commercial grade of Sultanabad weaving, much of it from the 1900s to the 1930s.

Lavar

A trade term for the finest grade of Kerman weaving, borrowed from the nearby town of Ravar.