Kashan
When one speaks of top quality Persian carpets, the names of Isfahan and Kashan are often linked. Kashan lies halfway along a line drawn north from Isfahan towards Tehran.
It is quite certain, however, that Kashan, with its favorable climate, at the western edge of the great salt desert produced and exported carpets of the highest artistic craftsmanship and cultural value over several centuries. The Vienna Hunting Carpet' in the Austrian Museum of Applied Art; the Ardebil in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and the famous silk carpet in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, are the best known of the surviving monuments of an epoch which ended with the weaving of the so-called Polanaise carpets - some of which were commissioned by the nobility of eastern Europe.

Today Kashan produces velvet, silks and carpets as well as interesting ceramic and metal work. However, the huge bazaar and its side stalls are dominated by the carpets woven on the 15,000 or so looms in the Kashan area - which produce some 100 pieces every day.

Sizes: in the town workshops all formats are produced including room size carpets up to 12 sq. m (130 sq. ft.). The villagers generally weave rugs up to 1.50 x 2.20 m (5 ft. x 7 ft. 3 in.).

Colours: clear blue or red shades as well as beige and ivory are used for the field, with numerous contrasting colours for the designs. The colours excel in their subtle brilliance.

Patterns: Amongst the many designs are found the majority of Persian floral motifs, including arabesques and flower-stems, palmettos, rosettes, blossom and leaf motifs. Rugs with medallion, mirror and vase designs, and pictorial rugs are less common.

Knots: the carpets are extremely dense and woven in the Persian knot. The weave is fine to exceptionally fine, with 2,000-10,000 knots per sq. dm (130-650 per sq. in.), or even finer for silk carpets.

Pile: very good quality wool, often obtained from Kermanshah. Top quality pieces are made from kurk wool, occasionally with the use of silk for design outlines. The material for silk carpets comes from local sericulture. Kashans are mostly cut flat; those woven from kurk sheep's wool or silk, very flat.

Quality: these carpets belong to the best made in Persia and are exceptionally hard wearing and highly decorative. The best pieces, especially those which are old, are a good investment. However, carpets of lower quality appear on the market labeled Kashan which are woven in the surrounding villages. Sometimes these are offered as Kashan 2' or Arun-' or Harun-Kashans', Nathan Kashans' or Nasrabad-Kashans'. In the main, such rugs are somewhat coarser pieces of a lower standard. They are, however, very good furnishing carpets of the upper medium category.

On the other hand, Motashem' Kashans, named after the workshops of a well-known Iranian rug weaver, belong at the top of the highest category. Often woven in kurk wool and silk to the highest finish, a favorite design includes a pointed oval medallion with the corners to match.

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Last Update  16 May, 2008