Gabbeh Oriental Rug 146 × 200 cm, Wool, hand-knotted, antique

Overview

A Gabbeh Oriental rug from Afghanistan, measuring 146 × 200 cm. It covers approximately 2.92 m², or 4.8′ × 6.6′. Gabbeh rugs are knotted by nomads in southern Iran with a thick pile and a reduced, almost abstract pattern.

Materials and construction

Stated material: wool. The rug was knotted entirely by hand on the loom, which is why the surface is not mechanically even but carries the small irregularities that mark hand work. New wool gives a resilient pile that recovers from footfall and takes dye deeply.

Size and placement

The rug is rectangular. This is the classic living-room size: a seating group can stand on it with the border still visible. In our size filter it is listed under approx. 200×150cm.

On the knot count

The stated knot density is 200,000–299,999 knots/m². A coarser count, typical of village and nomad work, where the pile is thicker and the rug hard-wearing.

Period

Stated age: 50 years or more. An old rug shows an evened, slightly lowered pile and the patina that only use produces; that is a mark of age, not of damage. The dominant colour range is multicolor. The piece is a one-off: in this combination of size, material, knot count and drawing it exists exactly once, and it cannot be reordered once sold.