A Mashhad rug workshop described as very famous, best known as the place where Khalil Khadivi began his career as a designer and weaver and rose to foreman before setting up his own workshop and signature in the twentieth century.
The carpet-weaving enterprise of the charitable organization that runs the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, Iran. It began as a small operation weaving chiefly for the shrine and, in the early 1980s (about four years after the Iranian revolution), grew into a large-scale producer of Mashhad rugs, reportedly over 6,000 square meters (about 65,000 square feet) a year with more than 500 artisans. It is known for special dyes, described as natural vegetable dyes, that give deep reds and blues. Rugs bearing its signature were often destined for shrines or commissioned as gifts.
Persian city rugs from Mashhad, Iran's second-largest city, in the north-east, where weaving began in the late Middle Ages. They are known for high knot density (typically above 250 KPSI, roughly 39 per cm², and exceptionally near 1,000, about 155 per cm², on a silk foundation) and intricate flower designs in medallion, medallion-and-corner or allover layouts, in wine-red or burgundy, deep blue, green and cream. The pile is wool on a cotton foundation and higher than in most city rugs; a silk foundation is rare, and newer silk-and-wool pieces add silk to the pile. Rugs of the closed Saber workshop are now collectible, while Astan Quds Razavi remains a well-known name.
Rugs of eastern Iran that some dealers sell under the name Moud Mashad, listing them with Mashhad rugs. They usually carry a Herati design in beige, blue, rust and red and are often signed by their maker. The foundation is cotton; older pieces have a plain woolpile, while many newer ones use a silk-and-wool pile.
A weaving workshop in Mashhad (Mashad), northeastern Iran, founded around the mid-twentieth century by Abbas Gholi Saber and known for large, high-end rugs of typically about 12 square meters (roughly 129 square feet, or 10 by 13 feet) and up, made on about sixty looms at its peak. Some pieces use a silk foundation, very uncommon among Mashhad rugs, which are usually woven wool on cotton; one such piece is said to reach nearly 1,000 knots per square inch (about 155 per square centimeter). After the founder's death his longtime foreman reportedly kept up the same quality but stopped adding the Saber signature, so signed Saber rugs are rare, collectible and bring higher prices.