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 Hamadan is a city situated in the western part of Iran, 300 kilometres west of Teheran. It is one of the worlds oldest cities and is mentioned under the name of Ekbatana. The city is a centre for trading with carpets that are manufactured in the hundreds from nearby villages and cities. The best of these carpets are sold under their own names such as Nahavand, Tuiserkan,  Malayer or Hosseinabad. More simple carpets from the area are sold under the generic term Hamadan. They are easily recognized with their typical patterns and sizes. The patterns are very varying and the medallion as well as carpets with repeated patterns occur. Among individual pattens the Herati is the most common pattern. The colours are dominated by different nuances of indigo blue and madder red. Older Hamadan carpets can be very attractive products. In the city itself, Hamadan, carpets were manufactured with a considerably higher quality.  The carpets were called Shahr-baff and are similiar in structure to the Bidjar carpets , but they are rare on the market today.

The Hamadan carpets are manufactured with a roppy, shiny and often natural dyed handspun yarn, that provides a very durable surface and beautiful colour scale. Common for all these carpets is that they are nowadays made on a cotton warp with one weft. The patterns are mostly geometrical, but floral motifs also occur. Materials and design can be of very varying quality. Older carpets (before 1920) are often tied on wool warp, different from todays cotton warp. The younger carpets (after 1960) often have synthetic colorus and less fine wool than older carpets. The most common sizes are dozar and zaronim (approximately 200×120 cm and 150×100 cm). In general Hamadan can be said to be good utility carpets.

THE HAMADAN RUG – These rugs can be stylistically diverse in pattern and weave


In central Iran, where the wide plains rise sharply into the Zagros Mountains, the regional capital, Hamadan, stands as one of the oldest cities in the world. Some historians believe it dates as far back as 1100 B.C., when Assyrian kings ruled the area, but even at its youngest, Hamadan can trace its roots to the 7th century BC, when Herodotus first wrote it into history. The city is a place of extremes: the dry vast plains and jagged mountains; the surrounding desert and green city; the ancient history and modern life. These contrasts, so visible in the region’s landscape, have long inspired its native arts. Hamadan, as the name applies to textiles, is in fact something of an umbrella term. It can refer either to the rugs made in the city itself or to those made in any of its estimated 1500 surrounding villages—some extending deep into the provinces. As such, Hamadan rugs can be stylistically diverse, though key characteristics in pattern and weave bind them as an historic and artistic style. Aesthetically, the palette is primary and bold: dark blues contrast with vivid reds to create clear delineations of line and form. Patterns vary, but the most common is perhaps the Herati motif (also known as the “fish” motif for the inner leaves’ resemblance to tiny fish) in which central flowers branch out in intricate geometric flourish across the entire carpet field. Perhaps the most distinguishing feature of the Hamadan carpet is not in the pattern, but in the weave. Unique among Persian rugs, Hamadan carpets employ a technique known as the “single weft” weaving. Here, each row of knots  is separated by one row of weft, thus exposing alternating rows of the carpet’s warp. What emerges is a distinct design in which warp threads are incorporated as visible elements in the carpet’s pattern. Tied with double (or Turkish) knots for strength, these are tough rugs where the wefts instead of warps form the carpets’ rigid backbones. Hamadan has grown into a major Iranian city where the art of rug-making continues to evolve. Today, the old exists beside the new, and the ancient weaving tradition has become a vital and growing part of the region’s modern economy. The numbers are extraordinary. There are an estimated 70,000 traditional rug weavers working in Hamadan, many in the sort of small scale-shops where rugs have been made for hundreds of years. In fact, there are nearly 30,000 in-house workshops operating in the Hamadan area, where local craftsmen produce the region’s famous rugs for an ever-growing international market. Besides that, an additional 14,000 people work in the Hamadan region in related sectors such as wool spinning and dyeing. As Hamadan grows into an ever larger center of artisan, high quality rug-making, one must in some respects distinguish between the antique and the contemporary rugs that bear the city’s name. The most significant difference is in materials. Prior to WWI, Hamadan rugs were typically woven on a thick wool warp, while carpets produced after the war are typically woven on a heavy cotton warp. However, in the key elements of design that distinguish the form—pattern and weave—contemporary Hamadan rugs carry on, unbroken, the ancient tradition of which they are a part.

Types of Hamadan Rugs


The major cities of the Hamadan rugs area are Malayer, Nahavand, Tuiserkan, Kabutarahang, and Assadabad. Rugs from the Hamadan district include those from the above cities as well as the rugs from the Bibicabad, Hussainabad, Dergezine, Ingelas, Kasvin, Mazlaghan, and Borchalou areas. The finest rugs are sold under their own names. More simple rugs are referred to under the generic term Hamadan.

Borchelou Hamadan Rugs

These rugs feature a brightly colored medallion on the field, often with a repeating Herati pattern. Fields are usually in red or white with the designs in red, blue, gold, and green. The pile is quite high and of medium quality wool.

Bibikabad Rugs

Bibikabad rugs are a type of Persian rug which often have a traditional red or blue field with ivory, green and blue highlights. They are woven with Turkish knots and typically feature large medallions surrounded by the herati pattern. The foundation is usually cotton with a wool pile. Bibikabad rugs are single-wefted like other Hamedan rug types. They are often found in large room-sizes.

Dergazine Rug

Dergazine rugs are a type of Persian rug hand woven in the Darjazin village of the Province Hamedan. Designs include repeating patterns, central medallions or detached floral sprays. They are woven with the typical Hamedan weave with single-wefts. Common colors include red, white and blue.They are similar in color and design to Lilihans and Sarouks. Dergazine rugs are normally found in scatter and runner sizes, specifically around 2×4. These rugs are popular with designers because of their durable nature. They are typically woven with wool pile on a cotton foundation.

Enjilas Rugs

Enjilas (Ingeles) rugs are a type of Persian rug. Woven in the southern region of Hamedan, Enjilas rugs follow the single-wefted Hamedan weave with Turkish knots. The Herati design is the most common pattern found in Enjilas rugs. Red, Ivory and Blue are the major colors. These rugs are very similar to Hussainabad rugs.

Hussainabad Rugs

Hussainabad rugs are a type of Persian rug woven in the Hamedan region of Iran. They feature bold geometric designs with boteh and Herati patterns. Common colors include red, blue and ivory. They are very similar to Enjilas rugs. Hussainabad rugs usually have cotton foundations and are very durable.

Kabudrahang Rugs

Kabudrahang (Kapoutrang, Kabutarhang) rugs are a type of Persian rug. They are woven in the northeast region of the Hamedan province in Iran. Kapoutrang rugs typically feature a diamond-like center medallion surrounded by floral sprays. They are woven with Turkish knots on a cotton foundation using the traditional single-wefted Hamedan style weave. Kapoutrang rugs normally come in large room-sizes. Color schemes include Red, Blue and Ivory.

Lilihan Rug

Lilihan (Lilian) rugs are a type of Persian rug. They are most similar in design and texture to Sarouk rugs. The term Lilihan is more commonly used in the US and is less widely known in Europe. They are also similar in design and color to Dergazine rugs. Lilihans are slightly floppier than the denser Sarouk rug or thicker Dergazine rug.

Structure of Lilihan Rugs

They are single-wefted with a Hamedan weave and woven with Turkish knots. Antique Lilihan rugs are finely woven. They typically have cotton foundations with a soft wool pile. The pile is typically clipped long. Because of their tight weaves they hold up well in mid- to high-traffic areas.

Designs and Colors

Tones of red or pink in the field and design are common along with neutral and blue highlights. Some have undergone the process of being washed and painted like many Sarouk rugs. In fact, they are often mistaken for Sarouks. For more information on Sarouk rugs and how to identify them, see our Sarouk rug guide. Designs normally feature floral motifs and sprays with curvilinear designs. They come in a variety of sizes from 2×3-8×10. They are tightly woven with high quality materials making them durable and long-lasting. The intricately woven designs, attractive colors and high quality wools make Lilihan rugs highly desirable among decorators.

Melayer rug

Melayer rugs are a type of  rug woven in the southern region of the Hamedan province between Hamedan and Arak. They come in a wide variety of patterns including all-over designs with geometric elements such as the one pictured below. They are finely woven with the typical single-wefted Hamedan weave and Turkish knots.

Maslaghan Rugs

Maslaghan rugs are a type of Persian rug. They are woven with the single-wefted Hamedan weave typically with Turkish knots. Maslaghan rugs are distinguishable by their unique center medallion. The medallion is surrounded bu spiked projections, sometimes referred to as the lightning motif. Shades of red and blue are the dominant colors in Maslaghan rugs.

Tuiserkan Hamadan Rugs

The typical pattern of the Tuiserkan Hamadan rug is a zig-zag line along the border that is reminiscent of Malayer rugs. The center usually has a single large medallion. Their colors are usually Indigo blue and beige.

Nahavand Hamadan Rugs

The Nahavand Hamadan rugs area produces characteristically coarsely knotted rugs with shiny wool of high quality. The colors are usually red or blue with patterns consisting of elements of nomadic and geometric motifs. Medallions can also occur. Dark colors combined with red, pink, blues, and green are common.

Mazlaghan Hamadan Rugs

Mazlaghan rugs feature an elongated field, usually in red, with a large and unique medallion and dark blue spandrels (corners of field). End borders are usually very narrow. The field is outlined with a pattern that looks like a bolt of lightning. These rugs are only made in small sizes because their patterns would be overwhelming in larger rugs.

Kasvin Hamadan Rugs

The Kasvin area, unlike the rest of the Hamadan rugs area, produces double-wefted rugs primarily in red, blue, ivory, and green.They often copy other Iranian designs such as the Kerman and the Sarouk.

Assadabad Hamadan Rugs Area

Assadabad rugs are sturdy and versatile. The patterns vary from geometric to floral and all-over Herati designs. The primary color is red.

Mehraban

Mehraban can be called a distinct instead of a village that is situated in northwest of Hamedan and contains about sixty villages active in weaving handwoven carpets. These carpets are weaving traditionally with symmetrical knots and wraps of cotton that just one woof passes after each coarse. Back if the carpets are embossed due to having tight and compressed wraps. Weavers in this area kept weaving carpets with high quality and didn’t consider changes in thirties and forties and used the designs of nineteenth century. Background is cream adorned with small images and almond medallions with long attachments. Just in some cases carpets with floral design can be seen woven in blue and red.

Other types

  • Rudbar (Roudbar)
  • Saveh
  • Tafresh
  • Tajabad (Tajiabad)
  • Touserkan

characteristics of Hamedan handmade carpet in brief


  • Visibility:Carpets made in HAMEDAN usually have geometric patterns. The majority of HAMEDEN village rugs all have a single-wefted medallion.
  • Quality:HAMEDAN carpets are of excellent quality. They last long and keep their looks and colors.
  • Size & Shapes:HAMEDAN carpets come in different sizes, but the majority of them are mid-size (4 x 6 to 8 x 10 feet). These days you can find many beautiful runners of fine pattern and quality.
  • Color:Dark red and powerful blue predominate, with ivory as a contrasting color. Other colors such as soft green, blue and brown are found in newer carpets.
  • Texture:Soft wool; thin, tight pile.
  • Foundation:HAMEDAN rugs and carpets have mostly cotton warp and weft.
  • Knots: Weavers in HAMEDAN use Turkish knots, and majorty of the carpets are flat-woven.
  • Price:HAMEDAN carpets are among the finest quality carpets. Keep in mind that, as a rule, the higher the KPSI, the greater is the price.

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