The Nain workshop founded by Fatollah Habibian, who is said to have begun weaving in 1903 under his father and, after the family's older styles lost their market and its stock was sold off, started his own workshop with his brother. He is regarded as the creator of the modern Nain rugFine Persian rugs from the city of Nain, near Isfahan in central Iran, where rug weaving began only in the 20th century on Isfahan's model and the Habibian workshop made the name known worldwide. The wool pile, often with silk highlights, is knotted on a cotton foundation at roughly 200 to 700 knots per square inch or more (about 31 to 108 per cm²). Density is graded by la (“layer”): the lower the number, the finer the rug, from about 650 KPSI at 4 la to 400-500 at 6 la and 200-300 at 9 la. Designs are curvilinear florals in medallion, allover or Shah Abbasi layouts, mostly on a cream or ivory ground with blue, beige and gray. Most Nain rugs are unsigned, though the Habibian signature is a well-known exception, and large sizes are scarce and costly., and the name has become synonymous with Nain rugs: Persian-knotted, densely woven, intricately designed, with silk highlights and a modern look. Habibian is one of the few well-known signatures found on Nain rugs, most of which are unsigned, and the founder's grandsons carry the workshop on.
A Persian grading scale specific to Nain rugs, in which a number such as 4, 6 or 9 counts the layers (la, "layers") of thread at each warp position. The scale runs backward: the lower the number, the denser the knotting. Figures often given are about 650 KPSIThe number of knots per square inch of a hand-knotted rug (KPSI; 1 KPSI is about 15.5 knots per 10 x 10 cm), counted on the back with a ruler as knots per vertical inch times knots per horizontal inch, averaged over two or three areas. More knots give sharper detail and, all else equal, somewhat more durability and a higher price, but density alone does not grade quality: Heriz and Bijar are durable at low to medium counts, while floral curvilinear designs blur without enough knots. Rough figures: under about 80 for coarse tribal weaves such as Gabbeh and Qashqai, 120 to 225 for many village rugs, 300 to 700 for fine city rugs such as Nain and Isfahan, and 600 to 1,000 or more for pure silk Qum. for 4 la, 400 to 500 for 6 la and 200 to 300 for 9 la (roughly 10,100, 6,200 to 7,750 and 3,100 to 4,650 knots per 10 by 10 cm), though the counts quoted for the same grade vary between sources.
Fine Persian rugs from the city of Nain, near Isfahan in central Iran, where rug weaving began only in the 20th century on Isfahan's model and the Habibian workshopThe Nain workshop founded by Fatollah Habibian, who is said to have begun weaving in 1903 under his father and, after the family's older styles lost their market and its stock was sold off, started his own workshop with his brother. He is regarded as the creator of the modern Nain rug, and the name has become synonymous with Nain rugs: Persian-knotted, densely woven, intricately designed, with silk highlights and a modern look. Habibian is one of the few well-known signatures found on Nain rugs, most of which are unsigned, and the founder's grandsons carry the workshop on. made the name known worldwide. The woolA natural animal fiber used for the pile, and in some rugs also the foundation, of high-quality rugs. It is durable, resilient, stain resistant and flame resistant, feels soft and cushioned underfoot, insulates against cold, and takes up dye readily and holds it for many years. It also traps dust particles, which helps reduce allergic reactions. Quality depends above all on where the sheep graze: high-elevation pastures and good feed give thicker, oilier wool, with Manchester, New Zealand and Ghazni wools the best-known prized examples. Early-spring shearing and hand spinning (finer, softer thread than machine spinning) improve it further, while thin, dry wool from dead sheep goes into cheaper rugs.pileThe surface of a rug or carpet, made of upright fibers in cut tufts or loops. In a hand-knotted rug it is formed by the cut ends of thousands of wool or silk knots tied onto the warp row by row, trimmed lightly during weaving and given its final height by shearing at finishing. Pile thickness, measured from the back of the rug to the top of the pile, typically runs from low, about 1/8 to 1/4 inch (3 to 6 mm), to high, about 1/2 to 5/8 inch (13 to 16 mm). Fine, dense designs are cut short to keep the pattern sharp; higher pile suits traffic and heavy furniture, lower pile suits door clearance and humid rooms., often with silk highlights, is knotted on a cotton foundation at roughly 200 to 700 knots per square inchThe number of knots per square inch of a hand-knotted rug (KPSI; 1 KPSI is about 15.5 knots per 10 x 10 cm), counted on the back with a ruler as knots per vertical inch times knots per horizontal inch, averaged over two or three areas. More knots give sharper detail and, all else equal, somewhat more durability and a higher price, but density alone does not grade quality: Heriz and Bijar are durable at low to medium counts, while floral curvilinear designs blur without enough knots. Rough figures: under about 80 for coarse tribal weaves such as Gabbeh and Qashqai, 120 to 225 for many village rugs, 300 to 700 for fine city rugs such as Nain and Isfahan, and 600 to 1,000 or more for pure silk Qum. or more (about 31 to 108 per cm²). DensityA measure of how tightly a carpet is packed. In machine-made carpet it describes the fibers in the pile and is calculated by multiplying the face weight by 36 and dividing by the pile height; higher density generally indicates better durability and performance. In hand-knotted rugs it means knot density (KPSI, knots per square inch), counted on the back and averaged over several areas (150 KPSI is about 23 knots per cm²). Like image resolution, higher density allows finer curves and sharper designs, usually with a lower-trimmed pile and more labor, but it is not the sole measure of quality: bold geometric village rugs are made at low to medium density. is graded by la (“layer”): the lower the number, the finer the rug, from about 650 KPSI at 4 laA Persian grading scale specific to Nain rugs, in which a number such as 4, 6 or 9 counts the layers (la, "layers") of thread at each warp position. The scale runs backward: the lower the number, the denser the knotting. Figures often given are about 650 KPSI for 4 la, 400 to 500 for 6 la and 200 to 300 for 9 la (roughly 10,100, 6,200 to 7,750 and 3,100 to 4,650 knots per 10 by 10 cm), though the counts quoted for the same grade vary between sources. to 400-500 at 6 la and 200-300 at 9 la. Designs are curvilinear florals in medallionA large motif at the center of a rug's field, around which the rest of the design is organized; the large central medallion is said to have been introduced in the Safavid era (16th-17th centuries). Floral medallions, typical of city rugs such as Tabriz, Kashan and Sarouk, are often read as a lotus blossom, and the motif has also been read as mirroring the interior dome of a mosque; geometric ones, often hexagonal or diamond-shaped, mark village and tribal rugs such as Heriz and Zanjan. A medallion may stand alone, come with four corner pieces, be flanked by smaller medallions above and below, or repeat down a runner. Rugs with no central motif are called allover. In a well-made rug the medallion sits at the center and the corners mirror one another, as closely as handwork allows., allover or Shah AbbasiA classic Persian floral style named after the Safavid ruler Shah Abbas and associated with the carpets of his reign, about 400 years ago. Its main features are stylized, feather-like palmette leaves and lotus flowers, the lotus being an ancient symbol of long life, arranged in strict symmetry with scrolling ornament around a central medallion, often a rosette. Early examples favored deep reds and blues, while later rugs in this style often turn to muted neutral tones. The design appears in Kashan, Nain and Tabriz rugs. layouts, mostly on a cream or ivory ground with blue, beige and gray. Most Nain rugs are unsigned, though the Habibian signature is a well-known exception, and large sizes are scarce and costly.
The name of a weaver or workshop woven into a rug, either in a small framed box (a cartoucheA small framed box woven into a rug to hold the name of the master weaver or workshop, often together with the city. It is one of the two usual ways in which Persian city workshops sign a rug; the other is weaving the name directly into the border stripes.) or directly into the border stripes. It works as a maker's mark that ties the rug to that workshop's standards; signed pieces from famous workshops sell for more and are sought by collectors, and a rug sold under a workshop's signature must truly come from that workshop. Not every workshop rug is signed, and a workshop can stop using its signature. Isfahan rugs and newer QumPersian rugs from the city of Qum (Qom), a comparatively young weaving center whose rugs are known for the highest knot density of any Persian type. About nine in ten are pure silk on a silk foundation, at roughly 600 to 1,000 knots per square inch (KPSI; about 93 to 155 per cm²); the rest, with kork wool or silk-and-wool piles, run about 300 to 700 KPSI (about 47 to 108 per cm²). Designs are floral medallions, hunting scenes and pictorials, mostly in soft pastel, ivory, gold and green tones (a pistachio-green field is prized) on light or dark grounds. Newer rugs usually carry a workshop signature, older ones often do not. The local water is said to soften and brighten silk, so silk rugs from across Iran are sent there for washing. rugs usually carry one, while most Nain rugs and many older Qum rugs do not.
Silk yarn knotted into selected parts of an otherwise woolA natural animal fiber used for the pile, and in some rugs also the foundation, of high-quality rugs. It is durable, resilient, stain resistant and flame resistant, feels soft and cushioned underfoot, insulates against cold, and takes up dye readily and holds it for many years. It also traps dust particles, which helps reduce allergic reactions. Quality depends above all on where the sheep graze: high-elevation pastures and good feed give thicker, oilier wool, with Manchester, New Zealand and Ghazni wools the best-known prized examples. Early-spring shearing and hand spinning (finer, softer thread than machine spinning) improve it further, while thin, dry wool from dead sheep goes into cheaper rugs.pileThe surface of a rug or carpet, made of upright fibers in cut tufts or loops. In a hand-knotted rug it is formed by the cut ends of thousands of wool or silk knots tied onto the warp row by row, trimmed lightly during weaving and given its final height by shearing at finishing. Pile thickness, measured from the back of the rug to the top of the pile, typically runs from low, about 1/8 to 1/4 inch (3 to 6 mm), to high, about 1/2 to 5/8 inch (13 to 16 mm). Fine, dense designs are cut short to keep the pattern sharp; higher pile suits traffic and heavy furniture, lower pile suits door clearance and humid rooms., such as flowers, animals and other pattern details, so those areas shimmer against the wool and the design gains vibrancy and depth. Because silk is finer than wool, it also permits a higher knot densityThe number of knots per square inch of a hand-knotted rug (KPSI; 1 KPSI is about 15.5 knots per 10 x 10 cm), counted on the back with a ruler as knots per vertical inch times knots per horizontal inch, averaged over two or three areas. More knots give sharper detail and, all else equal, somewhat more durability and a higher price, but density alone does not grade quality: Heriz and Bijar are durable at low to medium counts, while floral curvilinear designs blur without enough knots. Rough figures: under about 80 for coarse tribal weaves such as Gabbeh and Qashqai, 120 to 225 for many village rugs, 300 to 700 for fine city rugs such as Nain and Isfahan, and 600 to 1,000 or more for pure silk Qum.. The device is a hallmark of Nain rugs, where blue or ivory silk picks out different areas of the design, and it is common in Tabriz and some SaroukPopular, durable Persian city rugs from Sarouk, a town in central Iran about 50 km (31 miles) north of Arak, prominent from the 19th century and exported to Europe and America. A cotton foundation carries a medium-to-thick wool pile, at times with silk highlights, usually tied with the Persian knot (some older pieces use the Turkish knot) at medium-to-high density of up to about 320 knots per square inch (roughly 50 per cm²). Floral, medallion and allover designs, with some Herati, boteh and pictorial patterns, appear on beige, ivory, cream, navy or red fields, the red leaning toward orange or rust, usually with a thin secondary border. American Sarouks, woven mainly in the 1920s and 1930s, adapted designs and colors to U.S. taste, and many were re-dyed to a preferred rose red. rugs. Stains are harder to remove from silk than from wool, so a pile of pure wool is the better choice for a dining room.