Afshar is the name of one of the leading tribes of erstwhile Persia, the present Iran. These nomadic and semi-nomadic tribesmen are skilled weavers in the area south of Kerman. Since centuries, the weavers have been responsible for making hand crafted articles for daily purposes ranging from bags, saddlebags, wall hangings, tent coverings, rugs and carpets that are still seen today. Exquisite Afshar carpets and rugs are woven in either symmetrical or asymmetrical knotting styles displaying a vast variation between the decoration styles. Such a difference is created because some of the Afshar carpets were woven with followed traditional motifs whereas others exhibited ornamental ones woven in the nearby workshops in the city. Gorgeous ornamental Afshar designs consist of motifs like medallions with cruciform or rhomboidal superimposed medallion layouts appearing on a background of floral elements. The rest of the field embellished with the stylized animals existing side-by-side along with other motifs adopted from nomadic or tribal influence. The elaborate tribal Afshar carpets and rugs flaunt geometric figures or morghi motif (hens as morghi in Persian language) distributed around in rows encircling a medallion or a rhomboidal medallion. The borders are adorned with vines decorated with rosettes (any part, arrangement, or object, formation more or less resembling a rose) or only with rosettes. Tribal Afshar motifs are genuinely inspired from the domestic objects of their daily lives. Stylized Afshar rugs and carpets are identified with yarn colors to contrast dark backgrounds. Colors like white, red , yellow or green in a background of black are used freely. Similarly, brighter backgrounds see threads in paler shades. Such rugs and carpets with Afshar designs and weaving style are synonyms of durability and quality. Historic pieces with the similar taste and example are still seen today, which are loved by people worldwide.
Afshar
Afshar
As befitting their tribal origins, the weavers, all women, work on frameless flat (horizontal) floor looms , whether in migration tents or in village houses. Virtually all rugs are in scatter sizes, although there are a few antique Afshars about ten feet by twenty feet which must have been woven on commission for the houses of the local gentry as they are much too large for use in the tribal black tents. There is also a sizeable production of saddlebags, both square and oblong, and rare bedding or cargo bags, long and boxlike with pile sides, ends and tops, and plain weave bottoms. Any antique Afshar nomadic bag is at least potentially collectible. The nomadic Afshar weavers can draw on their own flocks for supplies of excellent carpet wool and the villagers are scarcely less advantaged. As a result, the pile wool is of top quality. The dyes of antique Afshars are all natural, with the indigo blues dyed by the local village dye master and the weavers handling the rest. Madder, walnut husks, pomegranate rind, straw, and weld are among the other important dyestuffs. Synthetics are not used in antique rugs from Afshar. The structures of Afshars are all over the map. Originally, they were all wool in pile and foundation, but cotton warps and wefts became prevalent in the early 20th century. Or they are mixed. The knot is symmetric, except when it isn’t, which is much of the time. Warps are flat, but they can be semi-depressed, giving a firmer, less flexible fabric. Piles are generally medium-low, and the knot count runs between 60 and 150 per square inch. The women work quickly, and a scatter rug can be done in a month. Afshars are by far the most eclectic Persian tribal rugs in their designs. The powerful influence of nearby Kerman cannot be avoided, and many Afshars have been inspired by Kermans. Ivory grounds with dense millefleurs and cypress designs or informal renderings of vase layouts clearly derive from Kerman archetypes. Afshar weavers borrow from anywhere: a simplified version of the turtle border in horizontal rows in one field pattern; a repeat of European-style floral bouquets; Sarouk-Feraghan style octofoil and cartouche borders on Deh Shotoran village rugs; innumerable boteh patterns adopted from shawls, Fars Khamseh Baharlu rugs or Kerman city carpets; chickens taken from household fowl; copies of Turkman gul rugs or Baluchis. The weavers will even take over a rug pattern wholesale as in their interpretations of Fars tribal rugs. The weavers are working to sell and anything that sells is fodder for their imaginations. Whether there is any authentic Afshar design under all this is open to question. But the rugs are artistically viable in their own right. The weavers do mix things up: their Turkmen versions have deep blue grounds rather than the reds of the originals. The weavers’ patterns are mental and never drawn out: no cartoons, no samplers, no physical design reservoirs. A rug seen briefly in the bazaar may be an inspiration months later. Often the end finishes of Afshar rugs have broad bands in Soumak weft wrapping. This flat-weave technique is used on the rare and very collectible antique Afshar all Soumak rugs. The patterns are similar to those of pile rugs.