Qum rugs, hand woven in workshops in central Iran, are usually pure silk with very high KPSI (knots per square inch) in typically curvilinear motifs.
Qum is located in central Iran, just south of Tehran. Commercial traditional rug weaving can only be traced back to the 1930s. Famous designers including Rastehzadeh, Arsalani, and Ahmad Archang oversee the production of Qum traditional rug weaving in their workshops. However, the workshops in Qum do not have the same level of technical sophistication as those in Nain or Isfahan. Interestingly enough the quality of a newer Qum traditional rug is superior to an older one. In most other regions, the converse would be true. Known as a major production center for silk traditional rug weaving, the highest quality Qum rugs are made of pure silk with very high KPSI (knots per square inch). Extremely talented local artisans use Persian knots to produce some of the most beautiful rugs in the world today.
Since rug production did not begin in Qum until the 1930s, Qum doesn't have any traditional rug designs of its own. They have adapted designs from other regions and personalized them in a unique fashion. The patterns on a Qum tradition rug are typically curvilinear, but landscapes and pictorial motifs recounting historical events are also popular. The color palette on a Qum traditional rug will be predominantly red, blue, and ivory.
The foundation of a Qum traditional rug may be either cotton or silk. The pile may be all silk, a combination of silk and wool, or kork (fine wool taken from the belly of sheep). The majority of Qum rugs are small to mid-size
(3’ x 5’ to 5’ x 7’). You may find the signature of the weaver woven into the border of a Qum traditional rug, much as you would find the signature of the artist on a fine painting. Revered and treated as works of art, many owners of a Qum traditional rug will hang it on the wall instead of placing it on the floor in order to show it off to its best advantage.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
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