Rugsville Beni Ourain Moroccan Ivory Black Wool Carpet 5' x 8'

The Moroccan high-Atlas weavers worked an open ivory field with sparse charcoal lines because the rug had to do two jobs. Pile-down it warmed a stone floor in winter. Pile-up it served as a sleeping mat. Decoration sat in the way of both, so the weavers learned to say more by drawing less. That restraint is the inheritance behind this piece.

The pile is hand-knotted wool on a cotton foundation. 2-3 weavers shared the loom across 3-4 months, working at roughly 80 knots per square inch. That gives a finished count of around 460 thousand hand-tied knots. The dyes were prepared in small batches and the wool was lowered into them before being washed in clean water and sun-dried over several days. Every step is done by hand because the result depends on it.

The composition

The field is built from undyed wool in two values. The line work sits sparsely across it. The whole arrangement reads as a drawing rather than a pattern, and the room arranges itself around that quiet graphic. The dominant tones run to ivory, black.

What you are buying

Hand-knotted carpets at this knot count and this fibre standard sit, internationally, at multiples of the asking price here. The Indian workshop ecosystem makes the lower figure possible without compromising the discipline. Used and looked after, the rug appreciates with use rather than depreciating, the way every honest hand-knotted weaving does.

The piece in a room

5' x 8' (152 x 244 cm) is the canonical scale for a primary living room with a sectional or two facing sofas above it. The composition is built to be read from the standing height of someone walking into the room. Sits well alongside leather, brass, ceramic, and the soft greys of poured concrete.

Conservation

Vacuum once a week with the beater bar disengaged. Rotate the rug 180 degrees every six months to keep the wear even. Use a clean cotton cloth on spills and work from the perimeter inward. Engage a hand-wash conservator every five years for the deep clean a domestic process cannot reach. The piece holds its value across decades of household use.

Reference

• Medium: hand-knotted wool on cotton foundation
• Dimensions: 5' x 8' (152 x 244 cm)
• Construction: hand-tied asymmetric knot
• Knot density: ~80 KPSI
• Total knot count: ~460k
• Hands: 2-3 weavers, 3-4 months
• Pile: 8 mm, hand-spun wool
• Dye: vegetable and low-impact mineral
• Origin: India

Shipped free across India. Cash on delivery available at checkout. 7-day exchange. Tracked dispatch with signed delivery.