Kashan rugs

A city of silk and carpets

Kashan is one of the oldest cities in Iran and was long a center of silk production. Under the Safavid shahs in the 16th and early 17th centuries, its workshops wove luxurious silk and wool carpets.

Weaving almost stopped after the fall of the Safavid state in the 1720s. It revived in the late 19th century, and most antique Kashans on the market today were made between the second half of the 19th century and the early 20th century.

Designs and colors

The classic Kashan has a central medallion with matching corner pieces on a field of curving vines, palmettes and flowers. All-over floral layouts and Shah Abbas designs are also common.

Most Kashans have a red field with a wide navy border, framed by ivory and lighter blue. Some later pieces use softer greens and greys.

Mohtasham and Manchester Kashans

Mohtasham is a name dealers give to some of the finest antique Kashans of the late 19th century, often with ivory, gold or soft pastel fields and a very short pile. The name is a trade label, so it does not prove which workshop made a rug.

Manchester Kashans were woven around the turn of the 20th century with soft, machine-spun merino wool imported through Manchester, England. Their pile has an unusually silky feel.

How to recognize one

Turn the rug over. A Kashan has a fine, even grid of asymmetrical knots on a cotton foundation, and the weft often shows blue between the rows. The pile is usually clipped short so the drawing stays crisp.

Kashan designs were copied widely, in Iran and abroad. A red medallion rug is not necessarily a Kashan, so look at the knot, the foundation and the fineness together.

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