Tribal rugs woven by the Baluch of the border region between northeastern Iran and Afghanistan, who sell them in the Mashhad bazaar for lack of nearby buyers. Designs blend Turkish, Persian, and Caucasian influences and stay closest to older Turkmen weaving: repeating guls (flowers in octagons), boteh, tree-of-life and prayer designs, mostly on dark navy, red, or brown fields with ivory and dark-purple accents, though newer pieces run lighter. The thin woolpile usually sits on a wool foundation. Weavers on the move cannot set up large looms, so rugs are small, typically 4 x 6 ft (1.2 x 1.8 m), 5 x 7 ft (1.5 x 2.1 m) or smaller, and runners reach only about 10 to 12 ft (3 to 3.7 m) long and 1.5 to 5 ft (0.46 to 1.5 m) wide.
Weakening of a rug's pile and foundation caused by prolonged exposure to high humidity or damp conditions. Moisture working into the natural fibers leaves them frail and can eventually make them decay, and the same dampness attracts moths and other pests. Damp, hot or poorly ventilated storage, bathrooms and humid climates are the usual settings; remedies are a dehumidifier, good airflow, a rug pad that blocks moisture rising from the floor, a lower pile that absorbs less humidity, and airing the rug outdoors in the sun for a few hours once or twice a year, without leaving its face in strong sun for long. Humidity swings also make a wool foundation stretch and shrink and distort the rug, whereas a cotton foundation holds its size better.
Tribal rugs woven by the Qashqai, a nomadic tribe of southwestern Iran that unites Turkic, Arab, Kurdish and Lur groups and has lived in the region since at least the 16th century. Designs come from memory rather than written plans, pairing geometric and medallion layouts, occasionally in a simpler, sparsely detailed form, with animals, plants and household objects, in jewel-tone reds, saffron gold and indigo, often on deep red or dark navy grounds. The thick, hard-weaving wool of the tribe's own flocks is durable yet soft, forming a medium-height, dense pile on a cotton or wool foundation that suits busy areas; compact looms keep sizes small, typically 4 x 6 ft (1.2 x 1.8 m) or 5 x 7 ft (1.5 x 2.1 m) plus runners.
The skeleton of a hand-knotted rug: the warp and weft threads on which every pile knot is tied. Cotton is the usual material in city and village rugs because it barely stretches or shrinks with humidity, so the rug keeps its shape, and it is rigid enough to knot through easily; that same rigidity can carry over into the design, which reads as less fluid than on a wool foundation. Wool, and sometimes goat hair, is typical of tribal rugs, whose weavers can use one material for both foundation and pile; it gives more character but a less straight shape. Silk, being finer, permits very high knot counts. The fringes at each end are the foundation's exposed warp ends, so they reveal its material.
The degree to which a hand-knotted rug holds true, parallel edges and a width that stays nearly the same at the top, middle and bottom. A machine-made rug almost always measures identical at every point, but a handmade one never does exactly, because wooden looms expand and contract over time, and wool foundations, which also react to humidity, do so more than cotton ones; village and tribal weavings are especially prone to being crooked. A difference of an inch or two (2.5 to 5 cm) is acceptable, while major differences count as a flaw that lowers quality and value. It is checked by eye from a distance, against the lines of a hard floor, or by measuring the top, middle and bottom with a tape.
A rug base in which the warp and weft threads are wool instead of cotton. It is typical of tribal rugs such as Baluchi, Turkoman and Gabbeh (Gabbeh and Quchan sometimes use goat hair instead), turns up in some Qashqai, Shiraz, small Bakhtiari and Iranian Azerbaijan pieces, and is common in older village and tribal rugs, including some Hamadan and very antique Karaja. Experts use it as a clue to age, since rugs made after about the 1930s usually have a cotton foundation, once machine-spun cotton became widely available. Wool's soft, less rigid structure gives the design a fluid, warm character, and the fringes are sometimes braided or in different colors. The drawback is that wool shrinks and stretches with humidity, so these rugs tend to be less straight than cotton-based ones.
Fine Persian carpets from the city of Yazd in central Iran, known for their intricate medallion designs and high-quality craftsmanship. Traditional Yazd carpets feature a central medallion with elaborate floral motifs, often incorporating silk highlights on a wool foundation. The color palette typically includes rich blues, reds, and ivories with distinctive curvilinear patterns influenced by the historic textile traditions of this ancient city.
Tribal rugs from the Zagros mountains of western and southwestern Iran, woven by nomadic, semi-nomadic and settled village weavers such as the Bakhtiari, Qashqai and Luri. The weavers usually use wool from their own flocks, giving a sturdy, often dense pile on a cotton or wool foundation, colored with natural dyes in bold, rich tones. Their designs, from geometric medallions to the Bakhtiari garden-panel layout, are woven from memory and passed down through generations. Bakhtiari weaving spread across more than 200 villages after the once-nomadic tribe settled, while Qashqai nomads work on small portable looms, so their rugs seldom come in large sizes.