Debra Ryono
09/01/2004
Antique Oriental rugs reflect the artistry of a tribe, town or even an entire region. However, most experts agree on six primary classifications.:
• Persian: When it comes to carpets, we often think of Persian as synonymous with Oriental. Not so. Persian rugs, a type of Oriental rug, feature lively, intricate, curvilinear designs with asymmetrical knots that are so tight and made of such fine thread (usually wool) that the result feels silky.
• Caucasian: Rugs from the tribes of the Caucasus Mountains are coarser, often with fewer than 80 knots per square inch. Patterns are more geometric and abstract, and they are among the hottest-selling rugs right now. Taste is not the only reason the Caucasian rugs vary so much from the Persian rugs. Some experts hold that the tribes could not afford the finer materials available to the Persians.
* Turkish: Broad, static patterns tend to be the hallmark of this type of carpet, which was frequently designed for mosques or the homes of nobility. Gold, yellow, blue and green are favored colors.
• Turkistan: Made by nomadic Turkmen tribes in Central Asia (Afghanistan to western China) these rugs are generally smaller than other Orientals and have dark-red coloring, with blue, white and black accents. The favored design is an octagon known as an elephant foot.
• China: Yellow, blue and white are common colors in these rugs, in contrast to the reds and browns typical of other Oriental carpets. The type of knot also is different.
• India: Carpets were less important in India than elsewhere, because the climate made cloth floor coverings unsuitable. Indeed, some experts do not include Indian rugs as a primary type of Oriental textile. However, rugs made in India are among the most extravagant, sometimes crafted with more than 2,000 knots per square inch. A fragment of a Mughal court rug with more than 2,500 knots per square inch hangs in the Textile Museum in Washington, D.C.
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