The Gabbeh emerged from the Qashqai and Lori nomadic confederations of southern Iran, who wove what they could carry and used what their flocks gave. The form is the most widely collected of the village Persian traditions because the geometry reads as contemporary even to eyes that find the formal Persian repeats fussy. What this rug carries into a current interior is the inheritance of that practice.

2 weavers shared the loom for 4 months. The hand-spun wool was tied knot by knot against a vertical beam, the pattern read off a cartoon set behind the warp. Plant dyes were prepared in copper vats over four to six weeks of slow extraction before the wool was lowered. The rug is offered in a red register, made in India.

The composition

Red dominates the composition. The geometry reads as a single composed surface rather than a stack of repeating motifs. Long-staple wool gives the pile a slow lustre that deepens once the rug has settled into a room and the foot traffic has begun to polish the high points. The colour shifts very slightly between dye lots within the same field, the abrash that connoisseurs read as the signature of plant pigment rather than synthetic. The wool is the carrier here, accepting the colour without flattening it and holding the slight variations of dye lot that read as life rather than as flaw.

The piece in a room

At the format here the rug suits a study, a smaller drawing room, or a primary bedroom. The composition pairs with mid-tone walls and warm wood furniture, and rises against off-white walls as a fielded ground. The size also works as the entry rug for a longer hall, with the pattern reading as one walks across it.

Conservation

Rotate end-for-end every six months so the foot traffic and the sunlight age the field evenly. Vacuum weekly on the lowest setting with the beater off. Address spills immediately with a clean white cotton cloth and cool water. Schedule a hand-wash with a textile conservator every five years. The rug is built to outlive several rooms. Direct sunlight on the field is acceptable and even helpful, since UV restores the dye depth that filtered indoor light slowly dulls.

Reference

• Medium: hand-knotted wool on cotton foundation
• Dimensions: size as listed above
• Construction: Persian asymmetric knot
• Knot density: ~80 KPSI
• Total knot count: ~552,960
• Hands: 2 weavers, 4 months
• Pile: 8-10 mm hand-spun wool
• Origin: India

Ships free across India. Cash on delivery available. Returns and exchanges within seven days.