Bakhtiari rugs
Sturdy Persian village rugs, best known for a field divided into garden panels.
Not sure about yours?Upload two photos and get a free report in about 15 seconds.Check my rugWhere they come from
The Bakhtiari are a tribal people of the Zagros Mountains in west-central Iran. Most Bakhtiari rugs today are woven in settled villages southwest of Isfahan, in the province of Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari, with Shahr-e Kord as the main market town.
Weaving also reaches into nearby parts of Isfahan, Lorestan and Khuzestan provinces. Rugs from this whole area are sold under the Bakhtiari name.
The garden panel design
The best-known Bakhtiari design divides the field into a grid of squares or diamonds. Each panel holds its own motif, such as a cypress, a flowering tree, a vase of flowers or a willow. The design is called khesti, from the Persian word for brick, and is often described as a garden seen from above.
Bakhtiari weavers also use a lattice of floral ornaments across the field, and some rugs carry a central medallion. Reds, browns, ivory, greens and golds are the usual colors.
Bibibaff, Saman and Hori
Dealers use a few names to describe quality. Bibibaff refers to the finest and densest Bakhtiari rugs, and older Bibibaffs are the most sought after. Saman and Hori began as place names but are now used mostly as grades, with Hori rugs being more loosely woven.
These names are trade labels rather than guarantees. Look at the knot density, the wool and the evenness of the weave to judge a rug for yourself.
How to recognize one
A Bakhtiari rug usually feels heavy and firm, with a medium to thick wool pile on a cotton foundation. The drawing is bold and somewhat geometric rather than finely curved, and the panel layout is easy to spot from across a room.
The garden panel design is copied widely, including by machine. Turn the rug over. On a handmade rug the pattern shows clearly on the back, the knots are slightly irregular and the fringe is the end of the warp threads rather than a sewn-on strip.
Quick answers
Are Bakhtiari rugs durable?
Village Bakhtiari rugs are known as sturdy rugs with a thick wool pile, and many are used in living rooms and dining rooms. How long one lasts depends on its quality grade and how it is cared for.
What is a khesti design?
It is the garden panel design: a field divided into squares or diamonds, each holding a tree, a vase of flowers or another plant motif.
Is every panel-design rug a Bakhtiari?
No. Panel designs are woven in other parts of Iran and in other countries, and they are printed on machine-made rugs. The construction and materials tell you more than the design alone.
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