Persian Carpets Before the Safavids: Reading Jalayirid Paintings
A closer look at carpets in Jalayirid manuscript paintings reveals repeating patterns, script-like borders and layered court interiors before the Safavid period.
Magazine
Persian Garden Carpets of Kurdistan
Two historic Kurdistan carpets show how water channels, crossing pools and planted compartments could turn a garden into a woven landscape.
When Kerman Carpets Became an Export Industry
How Qajar-era Kerman moved from a shawl economy toward carpet exports, and what trade records can and cannot tell us about the rugs and their makers.
The Colour Before the Rug: Qashqai Wool Dyeing in Oral History
From washing and spinning wool to choosing and combining dyes, oral histories from Fars reveal several routes to Qashqai rug colour. Learn what a finished rug can, and cannot, tell...
Bellini Carpets: The Keyhole Motif and Its Many Readings
Three real Anatolian carpets show how Bellini keyhole motifs changed. Look closely at their forms and colours, then separate visual evidence from symbolic interpretation.
How a Carpet Cartoon Guides a Weaver: Isfahan and Tabriz
How does a rug design become instructions at the loom? See two documented ways that gridded plans, colour and yarn cards help weavers follow a pattern.
Solomon in a Safavid Niche Rug: Words, Light and Kingship
A Safavid niche rug uses Solomon's name, Qur'anic inscriptions, colour and floral forms to bring spiritual and royal meanings into one composition.
William Morris Carpets
Look closely at William Morris's carpets and drawings, from Persian influences and hand-knotted Hammersmith work to the repeating flowers of Tulip and Lily.
Persian Hunting Carpets: The Art of the Chase
Mounted archers, fighting animals and flowering fields reveal how Persian artists turned the hunt into a patterned world, then reimagined it centuries later.
Sanguszko Carpets: Safavid Stories Woven in Wool
Lovers, hunters and mythical creatures share the world of Sanguszko carpets. An illustrated look at Safavid storytelling and its later Qajar reinterpretation.
Afghan War Rugs: History, Motifs and Three Generations
A source-grounded guide to Afghan war rugs, from subtle Soviet-era motifs to post-2001 designs, with careful attention to weaving, displacement, markets, materials, and interpretation.
Saffron Threads in Persian Rugs and Persian Cuisine
The red saffron threads used in Persian cooking and the purple petals of the saffron flower are different materials. Both belong to Crocus sativus, but a claim about one cannot...