Antique Afshari | 234 x 146 cm | Nr. Z-1783

Antique Afshari

Delivery time	2 days
Origin	Persia
Dimensions	234 cm x 146 cm (= 3.42 m²)
Construction	hand-knotted
Material	Pile: wool (hand-spun, natural dyes)
knots	120.000
Condition	pre-owned, but in very good condition (cleaned & restored)
Edition	one-of-a-kind piece

Origin

The Afshar (also spelled Afschar) were an important Oghuz tribe. The "i" in the name Afshari corresponds to our preposition "of". Afshari therefore means rug of the Afshar. Originally the Persian Afshar lived in the north-west of Iran, on the Afghan border. Part of the tribe was forcibly resettled in the south-east of Iran, near the city of Kerman on the Silk Road. Here knotting rugs became an important source of income for the Afshar. Ever since the resettlement, the Afshar have also been known for their distinctive hand-knotted Afshar rugs. Afshar rugs are sometimes traded as Sirdjan rugs as well. The rugs come in red and blue tones and mostly geometric patterns. The most widespread pattern has a field in the middle holding one or several square rosettes. It is thought that this central field depicts a stretched animal hide.

This Antique Afshari is a collector's piece. It is around 96 years old, which alone makes it a truly special piece. Antique rugs such as this Antique Afshari are as sought after as ever and are auctioned at top prices by renowned auction houses.

Material

The technique used to make the materials for the pile of this Antique Afshari is more than 200 years old. The wool was dyed with natural dyes and spun by hand. Dyeing with natural or plant dyes is more complicated, more expensive and more time-consuming than dyeing with chemical colours. For a luminous red, for example, you need around one kilo of ground madder root as dyestuff per kilo of wool. For a strong yellow that is not too pale you even need two kilograms of the dyestuff weld per kilo of wool. Spinning the wool is time-consuming and labour-intensive too. On top of that, fewer and fewer people still know how to spin wool by hand.

But the effort is worth it: dyeing with natural colours allows the high-quality wool to keep its natural oil content. Wool that has been dyed with natural colours and spun by hand creates fascinating, shimmering patterns. The charm of hand-spun wool, with its slight irregularities and natural shades, comes into its own as a contrast in modern interiors, but equally in rooms furnished in a more traditional or country style.

The foundation (weft and warp threads) of this Antique Afshari is made of new wool.

Condition

You are not the first to take a liking to this Antique Afshari. It has had owners before you who valued and used it. The pile is worn in places. It was knotted around 96. We have cleaned it thoroughly and restored it with great care. That is why it is – despite its age – in very good condition.