From Kazak Sewan to Kuba rugs

Kazak Sewan

As the name suggests they were knotted in the area around the lake Sewan. In Kazak Sewan rugs a mighty cruciform shield covers almost the entire field, usually deep red brick, and is surrounded by a broad white outline and inside there is another star medallion typical of the Kazak Fachralu with hooked motifs. Kazak Sewan are considered by someone the  ancestors of shield Kazaks. are considered by someone the  ancestors of shield Kazaks.

Kazak Shulaver

The rugs are woven in the village of Shulaver in the Great Caucasus, between Fachralo and Lambalo, and they are characterized by the fine knots and  the excellent quality wool. They remain rare pieces that generally have the dimensions of the runner, just  like  this superb specimen. They are characterized by the presence of two compositions across the field arranged one above the other. The background is divided into square areas that fill the field, which in turn are chromatically divided in half and that in the overlap of the second compositional scheme go to form triangles with chain-like quadripartite lozenges arranged one above the other. The main border can be a crab-like, with oak leaves, etc., surrounded by Medacyl edges with a clever use of colour and refined combinations.

Kazak Uzbek

These rugs are also newly-born born just to fill the need for Caucasian rugs with designs with a budget price.. There are some well done, but the fact is that very often they are sold, both in shops and on websites, as if they were true Caucasians.

Kazakistan kilim

Old manufacture specimens are rather rare and were woven with mixed techniques and wool not coloured in shades beige, brown in various shades. These Kilims are very sober, tribal but refined.

Kenareh

Narrow and long rugs called runners or galleries.

Kermanshah Carpet

A little over 100 km from the border with Iraq and about 500 from Tehran we find ourselves in the province of Kermanshah, known for the Taq-e Bostan rock reliefs, a group of large rock reliefs from the period of the Persian Sasanian have been well preserved until our days. In this region’s rugs are frequently found medallions, boteh motifs and Herati subjects, composed of a flower in the middle of a diamond and four acanthus leaves that surround it, and whose name comes from the city of Herat located in Northwest  Afghanistan. The colours in the Kermanshah rugs range from red to pink, green to blue, very used also beige, rust and salmon.

Khalyk, Kalyk, Chalyk

Artifact which is used to adorn the camel’s chest in marriage ceremonies by Turkmen people.

Khersak rugs

Rugs of the Bakhtiari from Fars similar to gabbehs

Kheyb

It is a Juval finish with leather strips at the borders.

Khila Caucasian rugs

Named after a suburb of Baku where they were knotted, the typical subject is the boteh, rather elaborate and large, arranged in a staggered manner around all the blue field that sometimes is full and sometimes with a not very large medallion  and the four cantonals. They are quite rare and therefore considered collector’s items.

Khorjin, khordjin, kurjin, hurjin, Heybe in Turkey

Double shoulder and saddle bag. The sizes range from 40 cm x 40 cm up to 100 x 100 cm, square or rectangular. The front of the bag may be knotted, or kilim or Soumak, but one also used mixed techniques, the back is usually in kilims and sumac. The closure is obtained by means of eyelets and rings.

Korjin Soumak

The various nomad people’s double-pocket bags, realized with the Soumak technique.

Khotan Paki and Seifi modern rugs

I’d like to point out first that the classic ancient Khotan has nothing in common with these rugs. These are in fact modern rugs made in Pakistan and Afghanistan with designs that are between the new Persian Gabbeh rug and the Western modern rug. They are hand knotted rugs born to replace the Gabbeh because they weigh much less and have a much more enjoyable and suitable design for western home furnishing.

Khotan Rugs

Rugs that were knotted in the areas of the oases of Yarkand, Khotan, Kashgar and sometimes also called Samarkand, even if it was just a commercial center on the Silk Road. The reasons for the decorations were different; ranging from so-called ” pomegranate pattern “, an elaborate grid pattern on a field that could be black, blue or red that over time have exhibited Abrash bands conferring specimens some movement. A grid pattern all across the field and edges with double hooks that is probably the most archaic. The vessels and objects motif of Chinese symbolism of the early ‘900 arranged in a row horizontally.

Kilim – tailing  technique

The weft threads of different colour that meet alternately envelop the same warp. This way you do not create any cracks, the kilim becomes more resistant and it is reversible.

Kilim – splitting technique

It is the most widely used: for every purpose of design plots of different colour are used separately. When the two motifs meet, the wires of different colour wrap separately the two adjacent warps delimiting the different areas of colour, and retrace on the contrary the path of the plots below. In this way it creates a slit between the two colour zones, which of course should not be too long in order not to weaken the rug. To obtain oblique lines the coloured textures meeting points are moved laterally to form steps. With this technique the kilim that derives presents two rights, and it is therefore possible to use it on both sides.

Kilim – curved weave technique

The plots are diverted to obtain a line integral tendency: inserting additional plots one will curve around them the main plot. It is a technique that we find in Senneh Kilim and requires considerable skill, especially in the tension of the plots.

Kilim – linking technique

In this case the contiguous  wefts of different colour link between them one by one (simple engagement), or one with two (double engagement). With this technique, used mainly by the Bakhtiari tribes, on the back one can see the meeting areas because they remain in relief, and then in this case the kilim is not reversible.

Kilim, called also Kelim, Gelim, Gilam, Khelim, Palas, Gajari, Dharry according to the country

In Persian it means “woven rug” and differs from the knotted rug because it is flat and without fleece; in fact it consists of coloured weft threads (horizontal threads) made to pass on alternating warp threads (the parallel longitudinal threads visible only in the fringes). The Kilim represents the principal form of art of the nomadic tribes, spread in Persia since the most ancient times and also the origin of many designs dating back to prehistoric times. The art of the kilim is a traditional women’s prerogative  and it is anonymous. The author does not need to sign for her work because she has not produced it to exchange it. The kilims weaving techniques are essentially four: splitting, dove tailing, linking and curve weaving

Kirman, Kirman Raver or Kerman Laver

For many years, it is an important center of south-eastern Iran, also mentioned by Marcopolo with regard to the weaving of silk drapes. The Kerman rugs have a rich floral decoration with medallion, or design boteh, or prayer. The Kirman Ravar, term often deformed to Laver, are very fine quality rugs and are knotted by artisans of the village of the same name, 40 km from Kirman. You can still find some examples of nineteenth century Kirman in good condition, but unfortunately many of these antique specimens, especially those of the mid ‘800’s, are worn and that is why it is hard to find examples like these in perfect condition. Many have been painted on the frayed part (NOT IN OUR CASE), for this reason we recommend that you be very careful if you make purchases of important pieces.

Knot

You can say that it is the smallest part of fleece in a rug. The set of knots form the pile in rugs. The woollen or silken threads are wound around the two adjacent warps and then the shaving is carried out . The knotting techniques are different in different countries: the symmetrical  turkish knot, called turkbaft or Ghiordes, the asymmetrical Persian knot, said farsibaft and to senneh. There is then the  fraudulent jufti knot which takes three or four warps instead of two. Other knot types are the Spanish one tied to a single warp, the Tibetan, the Chinese and the Berber ones.

Knotting

Action by which one creates the fleece in Rugs. The term is often used in lieu of weaving and indicates the procedure, in carpet production, with which the weaver creates the carpet knotting the wool yarn around the warps. In the  previous GLOSSARY OF CARPET page there are some pictures of the  women weavers of Azerbaijan at the frame  knotting a rather large  carpet.

Konagkend Kuba rugs

It is located south of Chi-Chi, in the Kuba area. There are three kinds of different subjects in this type of Caucasian rugs. The type with white arabesques or golden honeycomb on a night blue background  and a biscuit or in oak leaves border; the second has a large blue central cross medallion on a red field, or vice versa, and four octagons at the corners. The third, called Orduch- Konagkend, which has three octagons shaped like stacked göl, with stylized bird inside, placed in a blue shield that takes the whole field.

Konya or Konia kilim

They are woven in the city of Konya, a town on the Anatolian plateau south of Ankara, which is said to date back almost to the third millennium BC. The most common format is the prayer and elongated one.

Kuba Chi Chi or Ci-ci

They come from the Chi-chi, south of Kuba, knotted by the Chechen populations, they are rugs with a minute design,  to the point that it looks like a mosaic. The Chi-Chi rugs are easily identifiable by the characteristic main border: the little roses are alternated to diagonal bands called ” biscuit edge “. Typical of the field is the horizontal alignment of its motifs, to couples of stylized birds disposed frontally that blend in different colour combinations; frequently in rows of tiny polygons laddered and hooked with alternate colours and the distinctive  eight-pointed stars in circles on white background.

Kuba Karagashli rugs

In the Karagashli area, a small town located on the shores of the Caspian Sea between Perepedil and Derbent, were knotted very special rugs. The field contains three central leaves almost rhomboid, rusty red with a central rosette from whose center radiate thin diagonal lines connected by bi-forked shaped branches typical of Karagashli. Very nice the typical main frame with stylized oak leaves and chalices that stand out in a bright yellow background.

Kuba kilim

They are those weaved in the Caucasus region of the same name overlooking the Caspian Sea over the Shirvan. Very often they are called Shirvan Kilim.