The rug industry does not have a long history in Tehran, the capital and most populated city of Iran. Maybe around 150 years ago, few workhouses started weaving a rug in the city. The peak period of Tehran rugs and weaving goes back to the Qajar era, and some of its examples are very exquisite.
Over time, many rug weavers from all over migrated to Tehran, making it the center of developing the rug industry. In this article, we will tell you about the exciting features of the Tehran rug. And, we will cover a brief history of Tehran, which was once the Silicon Valley of the rugs!
Where is Tehran?
Tehran was an unimportant village near the ancient city of Rey until 1796. That was the year when the Qajar dynasty chose Tehran as the new capital. During the two following centuries, that village became a crowded megacity.
In the 20th century, Tehran became the destination of mass migration of people from all over Iran. Nowadays, it is the largest city in western Asia, with more than 13.27 million population.
In the Pahlavi era, rug weaving ended up in Tehran due to its social development and lack of economic justification. Only a few workshops were established during this time. They were all specialized in the training and education of new generations.
What is the Tehran Rug?
What we call today the Tehran rug has been produced from 1950 until now. These rugs are very similar to Azerbaijani, Khorasani, Kashani, and Bijari rugs for their type of plan and colors.
Basically, Tehran is the primary and central market of the Iranian rug business. It’s also the largest rug market in Iran, located at the heart of the city.
The rug stores of Tehran’s grand bazaar get their goods from Qom and more elegant and expensive rugs from Tabriz. Tehran rugs range includes a wide area and acquires many different weaving, design, and ornaments.
Tehran has been the center for exchanging ideas for many Iranian contemporary rug designers. That has led to the development of various design styles in this city.
So, you could find many Tabriz, Isfahan, Kashan design styles in Tehran’s rug bazaar. Tehran’s old and modern rugs are very varied in design and texture. The rug weavers are mostly immigrants from other cities in Iran. For instance, you could find Turkmen rugs, Kerman, and Tabriz rugs in a workshop.
Rug weaving in Tehran province has a high diversity due to rug weavers from different parts of the country. Also, both types of Persian, Turkish, and double knots are common in those rug workshops. Tehran rug is usually weaved with a bright background.
The rug weavers use traditional patterns or modern forms with spandrel (Lachak Toranj) patterns. The motifs are mostly inspired by animals, trees, and geometric patterns.
Furthermore, some Tehran rugs have Toranj, flower vase patterns, portraits, Sajadei, Mehrabi, Namazi, Boteh. Repetition of netted ivy patterns is also common in Tehran rugs.
Knot density is about 3500 to 6500 knots in each decimeter. The texture is pretty compact and light, and the compression is about 2080 to 5300 knots in each square decimeter.
The Material and Pattern of The Tehran Rug
The production of small rugs is widely common in Tehran. The material of Tehran rug strings (Cheleh) is cotton yarn. Their wefts are of two kinds; the first consists of thin blue cotton yarn, while the other is thicker and white.
The back of the rug consists of blue parallel well-arranged lines. That may happen due to variations in yarn’s diameter or a specific style of knots in the middle line.
The wool in the Tehran rugs’ texture has an exquisite quality. That’s why the Tehran rugs have a silky look and feel. The dyes of Tehran’s rugs are as follows: dark ruby for background and delicate blue for Lachas.
The rug weavers also use Black, dark blue, rose, purple, ivory white, green, and mustard, all these colors are herbal, chemical-free, and organic.
Iran’s Rug Company was founded in Tehran in 1953. The purpose of this company was to enhance Iran’s rug quality for the international market. The company also established many wool-washing, spinning, dyeing workshops, and rug weaving workshops in Tehran. All those above made Tehran the key and significant role player in art and Iran’s rug industry.
The most famous rug weavers and rug designers gathered in Tehran, the country’s capital, and made it the Silicon Valley of the rug industry in that era.
A Good Examples of The Tehran Rug
To illustrate all we mentioned above, here’s an examples of Tehran rug and a description for each of them:
The design of the pattern of this Tehran rug is among “classical” or “city woven” styles. The well-ordered design and the borders are symmetrical and flawless. Usually, there are seven rows of the border in a Tehran rug. The floral motifs in the minor border are the same as the flowers in the field.
The main design of the Tehran rug is frequent (Vagireh). Namely, a specific pattern is repeated to form the design. Also, the figures come together by delicate Xatāī lines.
The main figure is a cross with equal sides. Next to it, there is a round flower. The main artistic feature of the design is a trifurcate bouquet, repeated in the form of Vagireh.
In terms of aesthetics, this bouquet has an important role. Without that, the design would be so idle. On the other hand, the connection between the cross and the round flower is made by this bouquet. There is a slight similarity between the general design of this rug.
These designs come from the western towns in Iran, specially Bijar. The limited but accurate symbols and use of complementary colors have a significant effect (influence) on its beauty. This rug is an excellent example of the rare rugs in Tehran.
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