The Kurdish town of Senneh (now Sanandaj) lies in the mountains some miles from the frontier with Iraq. Here, some of the thinnest and most sophisticated rugs you can find are woven – quite different to the thick, heavy carpets that are woven in many places in Kurdistan. The pile yarn, warp and weft threads are all extremely thin, and the knot count is very high. The Persian asymmetrical knot is known as the Senneh knot. Senneh is a small town with comparatively few weavers, and manufacturing takes a long time because the rugs are so fine that production is limited. There are few variations in patterns, which mainly consist of pink roses, herati, and mir-i-boteh motifs. Roses and boteh are woven in rows over the whole rug, while the herati motifs are used in medallions and the four corners. The predominant color in early rugs is indigo with plenty of subdued red; late 19th and early 20th century rugs are usually cream, soft red and pale green

Sarouk rugs are good quality, with the wool pile clipped short or medium-long. The designs are separated into traditional and American patterns. Traditional designs include the boteh and herati motifs, but the most impressive is the medallion and corner scheme. Early 20th century American designs feature large floral sprays, which radiate out from the central medallion. Ferahan carpets were the finest in west-central Iran in the 19th century, and the name was synonymous with the herati pattern (a rhomboid surrounded by four small fishes.

*sourced from ‘Carpet Style’ by Marty Phillips

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085