Sirjan Rug

Sirjan Rug
Design of Sirjan Rug (Rugman)
General information
Name	Sirjan Rug
Original name	قالی سیرجان
Alternative name(s)	Sirjan Carpet (Afshar Rug)
Origin	Iran: Kerman
Category	Village
Technical information
Common designs	Medallion, Geometric
Common colors	Red, Navy Blue, Blue, Cream, White, Pink
Dyeing method	Natural, Synthetic
Pile material	Wool
Foundation material	Cotton, Wool
Knot type	Asymmetrical (Persian), Symmetrical (Turkish)

Sirjan rugs originate from Sirjan, located in the Province of Fars in southern Iran, is the main collection point for the tribal traditional rugs that are produced in the area between Shiraz and Kerman. Strategically situated at the intersection of roads joining the four southern provinces, Sirjan is an important market center. It is also the ancestral home to the Afshari people who have greatly influenced the style of Sirjan rugs. Sirjan is famous for its highly collectable “Sofreh” textile – a small, square shape Kilim type textile that had many practical functions including that of a dining rug. The majority of Sirjan rugs are flat weave, which basically creates a textile without a pile. The technique of flat weaving Sirjan rugs means that no knots are used in the weaving process. Instead the warp strands are used as the foundation and the weft stands are used as both part of the foundation and in creating the patterns. The weft strands are woven through the warp strands. However there are Sirjan rugs that are woven with the symmetrical knot at an approximate density of 100 KPSI (knots per square inch).

History

Sirjan is a city located in the Kerman Province of south central Iran. The majority of the weavers are from the Afshar tribe, although some weavers have other backgrounds of Iranian descent. Sirjan Afshar rugs are woven in over a hundred villages surrounding the city of Sirjan.
Sirjan Afshar rugs are known in the trade from the last quarter of the nineteenth century. They have a wool foundation and a wool pile. After World War II, many weavers from Sirjan switched to a cotton foundation. The Persian (asymmetric) knot is used. Sirjan Afshar rugs are durable because of the tightly hammered double-weft technique applied in weaving. Pileless rugs are also produced in Sirjan, generally for personal use.
The designs are geometric, with Turkestan tribal influences. The rugs have a medallion or allover pattern surrounded by simple motif elements in the background. Some designs have one, two, or three pendant-shaped medallions on an Open Field. In the allover style, repeated geometric flower bouquets are woven in the background. Sirjan rugs have several equally wide borders. At times, the main border is slightly wider and is recognizable for having a different color background from the field. The border motifs are geometric, with flower heads, leaves, and vines. Occasionally diagonal stripe patterns are made for one of the border designs.
Sirjan Afshar main colors are reds or blues, with a small percentage woven with ivory or browns in the field. In addition, greens, orange, gold, and black are employed in the design elements, borders, and medallions.
The rug formats range from small bag face rugs to approximately eight feet by five feet. Flatweaves are also found in the trade in dimensions of small tribal pieces to approximately eight feet by five feet. Sirjan Afshar rugs are generally medium to good in grade quality.
By the late twentieth century, some of the weavers converted from traditional Afshar designs to make Kerman-style carpets and rugs.

See also

Search for Sirjan Rug on Wikipedia.

Bibliography

1. Abraham Levi Moheban. 2015. The Encyclopedia of Antique Carpets: Twenty-Five Centuries of Weaving. NewYork: Princeton Architectural Press.