The Afshars are a nomadic tribe from the Dschesireh (the region between the Thighs and the Euphrates). But when they disputed with the Turkish Sultan over their taxation, Shah Abbas the Great invited them to move into Persia, where they have since been domiciled, either as a nomadic or a semi-nomadic population, especially in the region between Shiraz and Kerman.
Afshars rugs are brightly colored. The predominant hues are commonly blue, red, or ivory, in a number of small patterns with infinite variations between stylized and naturalistic floral motives.Besides rugs coarse texture, for which the so-called Tabachi (The wool of the fleece removed from dead sheep with lime) is employed, there are specimens of the very finest quality, for which a silky, glossy wool has been used. The finest are made in Saeed Abad, a large town of the semi-sedentary Afshars.
The back of the Afshar rugs often have a ribbed appearance, and sometimes (for example, in many of the rugs coming from Saeed Abad) a coarsely woven foundation.
Afshari rugs are mostly of prayer size. |
