The ancestors of the Afshar tribesmen were the Turkamans, who first dwelled in the Caucasian area and around Lake Orumiyeh (north-west of Iran). Successively by order of both Shah Esmail Safavi (1502-1524) and Nadar Shah Afshar (1736 – 1747) they emigrated and settled in the villages surrounding Kerman. At present, these people live in the towns of Sirjan, Neyriz, and Shahre-e-Babak, in the heights of Bafgh, on the slopes of the Lalehzar Mountain and in the South and West of Kerman.
The Caucasian design is still dominant among these nomadic weavers. Most of these carpets, with their geometrical and stylized designs, have enriched the collection of Iran’s carpet designs. Red, blackish blue, purple and ivory are predominant colors of Afshar rugs. The Design most common are Botteh, Vase (Goldani), latticed lozenge, overall flower, and five medallions.
Sirjan rugs have mainly geometric designs with large repertoire of ornaments based on polygons, plain and hooked diamonds. Normally the sizes of Afshar rugs are small and one can rarely find rugs that exceed four square meters.
Read our other blog posts on Afshar Rugs:
