Qom in pure silk | 120 x 78 cm | Nr. 16613

Floral Qom in pure silk, terracotta with border, medallion and signature

Origin	Persia
Dimensions	120 cm x 78 cm (= 0.94 m²)
Construction	hand-knotted
Material	Pile: pure silk Weft & Warp: pure silk
knots per m²2	1.000.000
Pile height	4mm
Year of manufacture	1980
Colour	Terracotta, gold
Edition	one-of-a-kind piece

Origin

Qom is a relatively young provenance for Persian rugs. The city of Qom (also Ghom, Gom, Qum) lies in central Iran, some 100 km south of the capital, Tehran. Since Qom had no long weaving tradition of its own to build on, patterns were — and still are — taken from other knotting regions. Over time, however, a distinctive style of its own has grown out of this. Today the silk rugs from Qom are among the most famous and finest rugs in the world. The field of rugs from Qom often has a light ground decorated with finely drawn medallion patterns or with all-over boteh or vase designs. This piece of true knotting artistry rightly bears the pride and the name of its weaver in the form of a signature, which translates as: "Qom Ahmadi".

Pattern

The lavish floral motifs of this Qom are elegant and wonderfully varied. The graceful plant symbols, depicting blossoms, leaves and branches, are artfully intertwined.

The decorated surround (border) forms a beautiful contrast to the centre and shapes the transition at the edge of the rug.

At the heart of this Qom's central field lies the symmetrical centrepiece, also known as the medallion. The design of the field is subordinate to the medallion, so that the medallion seems to float on the field.

A special highlight of this Qom is its signature. The signature records that it was made in one of the most renowned weaving workshops in Qom. Written in Arabic script, it speaks of the individual character and the noble origins of this rug.

The background of this Qom is cream white. The overall impression is also dominated by terracotta and gold. The border is worked in terracotta, blue-grey and cream white. In the dark red centre, gold and blue-grey are combined.

Condition

This Qom has a story to tell. It was hand-knotted around 1980. It has been thoroughly cleaned and is in good but unrestored condition. This piece is a little faded and shows some slight pile distortion. We have not restored this Qom because we feel it has a special charm exactly as it is. If you would like us to, we will of course gladly restore the rug for you. Either way, this Qom will bring you pleasure for decades to come.

Material

The silk of this Qom's pile makes the colours of the pattern shine in ever-changing facets, depending on how the light falls. It turns this Qom into a real highlight and creates an atmosphere in the room that is cosy and at the same time very elegant and refined. Silk is obtained by hand from the cocoons of the silk moth. Because the individual silk filaments are extremely long, very fine yarns can be spun that are light in weight yet still tear-resistant. Fine yarn allows smaller knots to be tied and therefore finer patterns to be created. This is why the finest rugs in the world are hand-knotted from pure silk. In this Qom, even the foundation is made of pure silk. The thin but hard-wearing material of the weft and warp threads permits a particularly fine knotting, and with it a particularly fine pattern.