Antique Sarough | 200 x 124 cm | Nr. Z-4509

Antique Sarough

Delivery time	2 days
Origin	Persia
Dimensions	200 cm x 124 cm (= 2.48 m²)
Construction	hand-knotted
Material	Pile: wool (natural colours)
knots	300.000
Condition	pre-owned, cleaned & partially restored
Edition	one-of-a-kind piece

Origin

This rug comes from Sarough (also spelled Sarouk, Saruk or Sarogh). Sarough is one of the best-known rug-knotting regions in Iran. Located in the western Persian province of Aarak, it takes in the provenances Arak, Djozan, Ghiasabad, Mahal, Malayer, Mohajeran, Sultanabad and Wiss. Persian patterns of every kind are knotted in Sarough, in some cases to the buyer's own specifications. Weavers there are especially fond of the neighbouring Farahan designs, of their own Sultanabad patterns and of the so-called Mir-i-Boteh pattern made up of paisley motifs. Typical of this type of rug is the very good wool quality of the pile, as the new wool comes from the Persian highlands. The foundation – warp and weft – is, however, usually made of cotton. In old and antique rugs you will often find a blue weft thread. The knotting is very fine and the pile relatively high.

This antique Sarough is a collector's piece. It is around 106 years old, and that alone makes it a truly special find. Antique rugs such as this Sarough are as sought after as ever and fetch top prices at renowned auction houses.

Material

The technique used to dye the wool for the pile of this Antique Sarough is more than 200 years old. Dyeing with natural or plant dyes is more involved, 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 for every kilo of wool. For a strong yellow that is not too pale you even need two kilograms of weld dye per kilo of wool. Spinning the wool is just as time-consuming and labour-intensive. 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 dyes allows the high-quality wool to keep its natural lanolin content. Wool dyed with natural dyes creates fascinating, shifting patterns. The charm of hand-spun wool, with its slight irregularities and natural shades, unfolds as a contrast in modern interiors, but equally in rooms furnished in a more traditional or country style.

The weft and warp threads of this Antique Sarough are made of cotton. This versatile material is tear-resistant and pliable, which makes it particularly suitable for a hard-wearing foundation weave.

Condition

You are not the first to take a liking to this Antique Sarough. It has had owners before you who valued it and lived with it. It was knotted around 106. It has been thoroughly cleaned and is in good, though only partly restored, condition. The edges are damaged in places. Here and there you can see a few white threads. That is quite normal with older rugs. They are the knot ends of the weft and warp weave, which work their way to the surface over the years. Structurally this is not a major problem. We have not fully restored this Antique Sarough because we feel it has a special charm just as it is. If you would like us to, we will of course happily continue the restoration for you. We can bring almost any rug back to near-perfect condition.