Workshop weaving of this scale and density survives because the visual logic was right from the start. A central composition. A disciplined border. A palette that ages rather than fades. The descendants of those workshops continue to weave in the same vocabulary, on the same kind of vertical loom, for the same reason the pattern survives.

A single weaver carried the loom for 3 months on this piece. Approximately 501,120 hand-tied knots at around 145 per square inch on a cotton foundation. Hand-spun wool dyed in small lots from madder, indigo, oak gall, and walnut hull, each batch matured for two to three weeks in copper vats before the wool was lowered.

The composition

Hooked guls march down the centre of the field. The red grounds the composition; the ivory works as relief above it. Madder reds carry warmth across the field while indigo guard bands hold the edges. The pile will compact and lustre under traffic, which deepens the colour rather than wearing it.

What you are buying

Comparable hand-knotted vegetable-dyed wool carpets sell through Western dealers at multiples of the Indian retail price for the simple reason that the labour is paid for once at source and marked up at every step thereafter. Buying from the workshop end of the chain is the structural arbitrage. The rug holds its value because the work cannot be reproduced quickly at any price.

The piece in a room

At 4' × 6' (122 × 183 cm) the rug fits a study, a foyer, or the foot of a bed. Hardwood and stone floors let the red register against a neutral ground. The scale lets the geometry be read complete from any standing position in the room.

Conservation

Rotate twice a year. Vacuum suction only. Blot spills, never rub. Keep the rug out of permanent damp and away from radiators. Hand-wash every five years by a conservator who understands wool and vegetable dye. The rug will run a century and pass to the next generation.

Reference

• Medium: hand-knotted wool on cotton foundation
• Dimensions: 122 × 183 cm (4' × 6')
• Construction: Persian asymmetric knot
• Knot density: ~145 KPSI
• Total knot count: ~501,120
• Hands: 1 weaver, 3 months
• Pile: 10 mm, hand-spun wool
• Dye: vegetable (madder, indigo, oak gall, walnut hull)
• Origin: India

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