Persian Tabriz. A Tabriz rug is a Persian rug from the area of Tabriz. Tabriz is the largest city in northwestern Iran, and is the capital of East Azarbaijan Province. The Persian Tabriz rug shown to the right combines Kashmir wool with a pure silk foundation. The typical pattern is filled with dense floral motifs, large palmettes or vases. Typical colors are dark red and a powerful blue. The style of rug is to leave the foundation long, and often you can find the weavers signature in the carpets border.

Persian Tabriz. High quality Oriental Rugs will show differently depending on the direction in which they are laid. The two images shown here are of the same rug with the light hitting it from both directions. All high quality rugs have two shades of color depending on how the light hits the rug. There is a light and dark side. Notice how it is light or dark depending on the view taken. Machine woven rugs do not have this trait, and will look the same from all sides.

Afghan Vegetable Dye. Before 1860, when chemical dyes were first introduced, plant based dyes were used. Known as vegetable dyes, this method gives rugs a distinct look that age beautifully, and blend harmoniously. With vegetable dyes one may notice a slight variation in the color as color saturates to different depths. This is influenced by the way the wool is spun. The rug shown to the right is a hand spun, vegetable dyed rug made of 100% wool. Click the photos for more detail.

100% Wool. The rug show to the right is a 100% wool Afghan rug with vegetable dye and short fringe. A wool pile oriental rug is a great choice. They wear very well, take dyes well, don't mat, and are easy to clean. Wool is a good choice because of their durability and resistance to soiling. The design shown is available in many sizes and can be custom ordered to you exact specifications.

An Oriental Rug. An Oriental rug is typically defined as one made in the near East to Central Asia, and is hand woven. If it is made by a machine, then it is of Oriental design, but is not considered an Oriental rug in the true sense. Most of Merrifield's Oriental rugs come from Afghanistan and Iran. The name of the rug is often associated with the region where they are made, such as Kashan, or Tabriz.