History of Khorasan handwoven carpet

Khorasan province is the largest province of Iran, centered on the city of Mashhad. This province covers one fifth of the country. About 600 years ago, at the same time as the Timurid era, the Khorasan carpet reached its peak and glory. At that time, Herat was the capital of Iran. This city was active and famous in all fields of art, especially hand-woven carpets. Many Khorasan carpets are named after the place where they were woven, such as Mashhad carpet or Birjand carpet. Khorasan carpets are usually of high quality and have soft and shiny piles.

     Amoghli carpet of Mashhad in Saad Abad palace museum

Famous designs in Khorasan carpets

Khorasan hand-woven carpets are mostly woven with Lachak-Toranj design , i.e. bergamot decorated with flowers and corners similar to bergamot. Other common designs in Khorasan carpet include  Floral, Afshan,vase, Bote Jeghe, and Herat. Of course, carpet designs in North Khorasan and South Khorasan are different. The weavers have recently added fish design to their designs and, like Hamadan carpets, cover the fish design throughout the carpet. In Birjand region, two types of design are popular: Kale-Asbi design and Robi-Saadi design. The most beautiful Rob-Saadi carpets are woven in Mood village, which is the birthplace of the designer of this map.

                A part of Birjand carpet map

What colors are used in Mashhad handmade carpet?

In the past, dyeing was done entirely by plants and by weavers. They also spun the required wool by hand because they believed that spinning machines would destroy the oil in the wool. These precisions made the Mashhad carpet one of the best carpets, But nowadays, due to the unaffordability of vegetable dyes, chemical dyes are used for dyeing.

The colors used in Khorasan carpets are not very diverse, among these colors we can name dark and light brown, dark and light red, pink, khaki, cream, and navy blue.

        Persian Mashhad area rug in Clifornia 9’6″*9’10”

Weaving of Khorasan carpets

The way of knitting Khorasan handwoven carpets is similar to other carpets in Iran. The vertical loom is raised and warp threads are pulled on it. These threads form the basis of a carpet. First, several rows are woven into a kilim, and at the same time, selvage is passed through the threads. This will keep the carpet firm. Then carpet weaving begins and the piles are tied to the warps with Persian or Turkish knots, then thick and thin wefts are passed through the warps and beaten with a comb to make it strong. They do this till the end until the weaving of the carpet is finished and at the end they weave several rows like a kilim and the carpet is ready for service operation.

                   Iranian women artists

Among the famous producers of Khorasan carpets, we can mention Amoghli, Makhmalbaf and Khadivi. The excellent performance of these masters made Mashhad carpets to be in a high position.

          Mashhad rug Amoghli ,1930s(circa)

Handmade Carpet Features

• In the Khorasan carpet, the wool is more commonly used for pile and cotton for warp and weft, But in the old carpets, silk was also used, which gave more shine to the carpet.
• The wool of the Khorasan carpet is soft and shiny, due to the softness of these carpets, they may wear out and become thin sooner.
• Both Persian and Turkish knots are used in Khorasan handwoven carpets, but Persian knots are more common. In these carpets, the knot density varies from 30 to 50 in 7 cm.
• The wool required for the Khorasan carpet weaving is provided by the Neyshabur, Quchan and Mashhad area.
• The dimensions of Mashhad carpets are usually 6 meters, 12 meters, and 15 meters. Of course, Amoglu carpets have dimensions of more than 100 square meters.
• The looms used are vertical and fixed.
• Two thin and thick wefts are used in the carpet texture, so Khorasan handwoven carpets have high strength.

         Mashhad rug Amoghli ,1930s(circa)

Carpet weaving centers of Khorasan province

Carpet weaving is common in most villages and cities of Khorasan. Razavi Khorasan, which includes the cities of Mashhad, Neishabur, Kashmar… Also, the cities of Qochan, Shirvan, and Bojnord in North Khorasan, and the cities of Birjand, Tabas, and the villages of Mood, Dorokhsh in South Khorasan are among the carpet weaving centers of this land.

      Mashhad rug Amoghli ,1930s(circa) ,Lachak

Buy Khorasan hand-woven carpets online:

Khorasan handwoven carpet is one of the ancient carpets of Iran. This carpet creates a unique decoration in combination with other elements. If you have chosen Khorasan carpet for the interior of your home, rest assured that you made the right decision. This carpet has had many fans all over the world from the past until now. We at Vernacarpets online collection, having several Khorasan carpets, accompany you for a safe and affordable purchase.

           Mashhad rug Amoghli ,1930s(circa)