How wide is a runner usually?

Widths quoted in titles start at about 44 to 70cm at the narrowest and run up to around a metre for the common North-West Persian format. The word "narrow" appears in 150 titles, used to flag width where it matters. A 44cm width on a 379cm length and a 46cm Quchan Kurd kilim at 495cm are the extremes recorded.

Which weaving regions turn up most?

North-West Persia is the largest single block, roughly a third of titles. Heriz leads it, with Hamadan, Karaja, Sarab, Malayer and Bidjar following. Caucasian long rugs account for about a tenth, Kurdish and tribal weavings roughly one in ten, and the Baluch and Turkmen group about one in twelve, rising in current stock. Kilims and other flat-weaves make up around one in fifteen.

Are these mostly 19th-century pieces?

No. The dated field runs 1750 to 1960, and the bulk falls between 1880 and 1930, with the 1900s the single largest decade. Earlier decades thin out fast. The 1870s, 1850s and 1860s appear only in small numbers, and pieces from those years sit near the top of the range.

Why do so many listings say rug or carpet?

The heading collects long, narrow floor pieces, but a large share of titles use "rug" and a smaller group "carpet". Small area rugs, kilims and some room-size carpets from the same weaving regions are listed alongside true runners. Dealers signal the corridor format with words such as narrow, long rug, kelleh or corridor carpet.

Do runners come in matched pairs?

They do, and pairs are a recurring feature of the archive. North-West Persian, Ushak, Kerman, Donegal and Heriz pairs all appear. Pairs sit well above single equivalents in the range. One pair of narrow Hamadan runners is given a combined length of 1,022cm.

What unusual types have appeared?

Alongside the Persian and Caucasian mainstream, single oddities turn up and are not repeated: a Kyrgyz piled tent-band fragment called a tegerich, a Nepalese rug, an Xinjiang runner, an American hooked rug and a Tibetan khaden. A Moroccan kilim woven from sabra cactus silk is another one-off. Around 160 runners are listed a year on Sellingantiques, offered by 58 different dealers, which is what makes room for the outliers.

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Antique Runners

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A runner is a long, narrow knotted or flat-woven floor piece, made across Persia, the Caucasus, Anatolia and Central Asia for corridors, tent interiors and the sides of rooms, and exported to Europe for halls and stairs.