How do I clean a tribal rug?

Never use a modern vacuum cleaner with a rotating beater bar. The stiff bristles catch the wool pile and can pull older knots right out of the foundation. Sweep it gently with a soft broom in the direction of the pile. If it needs a proper wash, hand it over to a specialist who deals in hand-knotted textiles.

I have inherited an old rug and the fringes at both ends are worn right down to the knots, is this a problem?

Worn fringes mean the foundation warps are exposed. If they continue to wear away, the structural knots holding the pile will begin to slide off the ends. You should have a restorer secure the ends with a blanket stitch. This stops the unravelling process and protects the main body of the rug from further damage. Most dealers consider end stopping a standard maintenance procedure rather than a restorative flaw.

What is a saddle bag face?

Tribal weavers made double-pouched storage bags called khorjins for transporting goods on donkeys and camels. The face is simply the decorative knotted front panel of one of those pouches. Dealers often find these faces separated from their plain-woven backs. They are collected as small display pieces.

Some of the red sections on my carpet look patchy with slightly different shades next to each other, why did they do this?

That colour shift is called abrash. Nomadic weavers dyed their wool in small batches over open fires, making it hard to match the exact shade of red every time. When one batch of yarn ran out, they tied on the next. The slight difference in the dye lot creates horizontal bands of varied tone across the piece. Collectors actively look for abrash. It highlights the non-industrial conditions of the weaving process.

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Antique Tribal Rugs

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Hand-knotted on portable looms by nomadic and semi-nomadic weavers, antique tribal rugs served as highly practical floor coverings, tent doors, and storage bags.