Farahan Sarouk rugs often come close to the angular drawing of Herizes and Serapis, but a much finer scale appropriate to designs of classical derivation. This delicacy of design relates closely to the weaving technique of Farahans, which is relatively tight and fine. The coloration of Sarouk Farahan rugs and carpets tend to be rich yet soft, with emphasis on terracotta reds, delicate blues and greens, and pastel apricots and yellows.
Antique Persian Feraghan / Farahan Sarouk Rugs
Persian Farahan Sarouk rugs were woven in the village of Sarouk but these carpets given the name “Farahan” as a distinction for their exceptional type of Sarouks. The Persian Farahan Sarouk rugs were made over a period of one hundred years beginning in the mid 18th century.
They have an asymmetrical knot on a cotton ground; the wefts are dyed blue or occasionally pinkish red. The weave is extremely fine and the many patterns combine both tribal and more traditional designs. They often have a floral border with a soft pale apple or pistachio green ground.
Feraghans were made between the 1870’s and 1913 from a region north of the town of Arak, produced for the Persian aristocracy. They are single weft, long and narrow or room-sized carpets, typically with an allover herati design or floral and curling leaf motifs.
Sarouk Feraghan carpets exhibit rich colors, often a red field, deep indigo accents and subtle shades of green. Feraghan rugs are of a finer weave than other types of Sultanabad rugs, with delicately executed motifs.
Feraghan Sarouk rugs, also called Persian Sarouk, are double weft, heavier carpets with a higher knot count than village Sultanabad rugs. Fields are often blue or ivory and designs typically feature either large medallions or representations of trees and birds.
They were developed in response to Tabriz merchants who were exporting carpets to the West. Designs were supplied to the weavers in the Sultanabad region who had difficulty executing the fine patterns; thus, these carpets tend to be a bit unbalanced and off-kilter.
The Sarouk Feraghans / Feraghan rugs waned in popularity as the American Sarouk gained prominence. American Sarouk rugs were designed to appeal to the American consumer. Colors, typically burgundy or rose-colored but also blue, were chosen to be compatible with wooden furniture. The motifs are all-over designs of sprays of flowers, vines and leaves more sparsely woven in the field than a traditional Persian Rug.
Dyes did not hold up to alkaline washings during manufacture, so the red backgrounds were painted to intensify the color. Today, the area continues to produce good quality, vegetable dye antique rugs in the tradition of Sarouks and Feraghans woven in the region throughout the last two hundred years.
History Of Antique Persian Sarouk Farahan Rugs
Western interest for antique Persian Sarouk Farahan carpets was instigated by the 1873 Vienna exhibition where they were displayed. The antique Persian carpets were originally fashioned for the elite and the ruling class in Farahan, a region in west-central Persia which had developed its unique and artistic carpet weaving technique in the 19th century that was inspired by several local designs.
It was only after the 1910’s that Persian Farahan carpets started being produced for purely commercial reasons. The original designs which were woven between 90 175 years ago, which are now getting increasingly more difficult to find, were a work of marvel due to their excellent craftsmanship, wool quality, diverse color options, and longevity. The combination of those factors resulted in unique antique Persian rugs that were in high demand from Europe and the east coast in the mid-1900’s.
Simply known as ‘Farahan’, these antique carpets from Persia have a cotton foundation with thin fine wool stitches asymmetrically. The Herati rug designs and curling leaf patterns are the perfect examples of the extraordinary quality of Persian 19th century rugs. Designs with a heavy weave and perfect sunburst (or teardrop) characterizations of central medallions are known as ‘Farahan Sarouk’. Art aficionados and renowned interior designers are ever searching for the best antique Persian Farahan rugs. Their unequaled beauty along with their demand among the elite has caused a constant increase in their market value.
There are two popular designs from Farahan; the Farahan Sarouk which is also known as Feraghan Sarouk, and the Farahan. There are other carpets that are an integration of the two styles in equal proportion. Antique Farahan Persian carpets have several distinct traits that make them unlike any other carpets in the world. They exude creativity in their floral patterns and exceptional drawing that deliberately magnify each other’s appeal. With the graceful edge to edge patterns generally of a midnight indigo background, Persian Ferahan rugs can have a multitude of knots per square inch with rugs reaching up to 800,000 total knots for a 4 by 7 carpet. They all have a smooth edge with some edges coming in rare light to apple green shades.
Though Persian court / city carpets from larger metropolitan centers like Kashan and Isfahan have more detail on them, antique Persian rugs from Farahan are equally sophisticated but with more ingenious “authentic” Persian designs that set them apart from other rugs and carpets. ‘ The art of absolute perfection” is a phrase coined in reference to Persian city rugs which have specific designs that make their carpets identical.
On the other hand, carpets from the Persian region of Farahan, do not have that exactness in the pattern or even styles and colors thus indulging the craftsman unique artistic input on each rug. These differences in pattern design and rug sizes coupled with variations in color shades exemplify the unique nature of Ferahan and Ferahan Sarouk carpets.
With the use of a myriad of natural carpet dyes, antique Persian Farahan carpets have mellow to subtle but very appealing shades. The midnight indigo hue is the perfect example of a color they were able to produce and use as an alteration from the standard palette of colors that were used for antique Farahan rugs. High quality rugs from Farahan are mostly epitomized by their great use of rare shades of green that range from deep forest greens to soft celadon and rich apple greens.
The Farahan plain in the Arak / Sultanabad district of Persia located in between Tehran and Hamadan is a very fertile agricultural hub but also the home of Farahan carpets. Despite the cultural roots, Farahan carpets have an array of floral styles similar to the Persian classic traditional rugs because they were designed for the rich urban dwellers and the political class. The blending of the multi-lobed medallions from the Tabriz culture and floral patterns and palmettes from designs of Persian Sarouk rugs resulted in a majestic yet simple designs that cannot be mimicked.
The use of raspy artificial dyes and adoption of similar and standard structured designs make carpets woven after the 1920’s less appealing and people usually avoid them. Antique Persian Farahan carpets from the late 18th century and early 19th century century can be found today in an verity of sizes. While the majority of the antique Farahan rugs can be found in room sizes and small scatter sizes while some palace oversized rugs can still be sourced.
In general, genuine antique Ferahan / Farahan Sarouk rugs, especially if they are in great condition, are highly admired and sought after but are getting increasingly harder to find. They are indeed rug collectors items that ranks highly among antique Persian rugs.
