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Kashan Rugs: Silk Sino-Kashan Carpet

Silk Sino-Kashan Carpet

5 foot 2 inch by 8 foot 1 inch.

This a nice is a very nice Chinese made Kashan style silk carpet. The color is very good and the weave is excellent, The finish is average. This rug is silk. I burnt a few stray threads and this rug passed the burn test.

How We Select Our Rugs

The dark areas are just shadow. The Rug is rectangular it was just photographed at an angle. Color is difficult over the internet, please use the Direct Scan below for the best representation of color in this rug.

Considerations of Using Silk Rugs

Silk can be very beautiful. The way silk catches and refracts the light has delighted mankind for thousands of years. Despite the great beauty there is a downside to silk

Times a fiber may be bent over upon it self before it breaks:
Sea Island Cotton	3,200
Silk	1,800
Rayon	75
Wool	over 20,000
Hollen & Saddler." Textiles". Page 29

As we can see from the chart to the left silk is less than 20% as resilient to bending as wool. Additionally wool has a hard outer cover that makes it more abrasion resistant than silk so when we factor in the abrasive effect of foot traffic we get a situation where a silk rug may last less than one tenth as long as a wool rug.

So before you buy a silk rug for your floor keep in mind a few points:

Silk does not stand up to heavy foot traffic.
Silk is harder and more expensive to clean.
Silk reacts poorly to water.

I am not saying do not buy silk rugs but make an informed decision.

Silk Rug, Red China (P.R.C.), late 20th century. 5 foot 2 inch by 8 foot 1 inch.

Structure: Asymmetrical knot. 19 knots per horizontal inch and 19 knots per vertical inch. 361 per square inch (5580 per square decimeter)

Yarn Spin: Z.

Warp: Silk

Weft: Silk

Pile: Silk

Ends: Fringe.

Selvages: Overcast with red silk.

Further Notes: New.

The dark area is a touch of shadow. This is a very nice Chinese copy of a Persian city carpet and is very striking as either a floor or wall piece.

N. B. Pretty rug but the finish is not nearly as nice as a Kashan or Turkish silk rug. Chinese slave labor can not compare to the craftsmanship of free weavers in Iran and or Turkey. My Government supports a One China Policy but they forget that Red China are the rogue provinces and the Republic of China is the legitimate government. At least in the R.O.C. there is no slave labor.

For Further Reading: Guide to Rugs & Books

Thanks and best wishes,

J. Barry O'Connell Jr.