8'4" x 11'9" Persian Moud Rug | Ivory & Rose Herati Field | Fine Khorasan Weave

This is a finely drawn Moud from eastern Persia, hand-knotted in wool on a cotton foundation and measuring 8'4" x 11'9". What you notice first is the discipline of the drawing: a stepped hexagonal medallion sits inside two further hexagonal frames, each one filled edge to edge with the same miniature Herati repeat, so the whole 100" x 141" surface reads as one continuous grid rather than a medallion dropped onto an empty ground. The pile stands a full 3/8" and is even from end to end, the selvages are tight and the ivory cotton fringe is intact, all consistent with the excellent condition noted above. A signed certificate of authenticity ships with the rug.

Design and Motifs

The field is built on the Herati, the diamond and fish motif that Moud weavers handle better than almost anyone. Each unit pairs a small rosette inside a lozenge with 4 curving leaves turned outward like fish, and the units repeat at a very small scale, which is what gives this rug its textile, almost woven-silk look from standing height. The layout runs as a concentric all over Herati design in bands: a small ivory hexagonal center pole medallion, then a dark ground hexagon, then an ivory hexagon, then a dark outer field, with the corners resolved as broad triangular spandrels rather than cut-off quarter medallions. The main border carries alternating diamond rosettes and turtle palmettes with small boteh sprays between them, framed by 4 narrow guard stripes of running vine. Look at the corners in the detail photograph and you can see the border pattern turn cleanly, which only happens when the cartoon was properly resolved before the weaving began.

Ivory, Rose and Deep Brown

The palette works on contrast between two grounds. The dark ground reads as a near-black brown with a plum cast, and against it the Herati repeat fires in rose pink, brick red, khaki green, tan and small points of ivory. The ivory hexagons and spandrels flip the same drawing onto a warm cream ground, where the rose and soft brown outlines come forward and the dark navy-brown drops back to fine outlining. The main border is the surprise: a light slate blue-grey ground, unusual and cooler than the field, carrying rose and ivory palmettes, with a sandy beige guard stripe on the inner edge. The overall effect is a soft, faded-looking pink and ivory rug from across a room that resolves into a dozen distinct colors up close. It settles easily with warm woods, brass, cream upholstery and aged leather.

Moud Weaving in Khorasan

Moud is a village in South Khorasan, in the far east of Persia near Birjand, and its weavers built a reputation on one thing: the finest possible rendering of the Herati at a small knot scale, in a restrained palette, on a tight cotton foundation. Unlike the big city workshop centers, Moud production stayed relatively small, and the best pieces are recognized by the crispness of the miniature repeat and by the way the wool, short-clipped to about 3/8", holds the detail without blurring. The wool here is soft with a quiet sheen and the back is firm and regular, which is what lets a rug of this size lie perfectly flat. At 8'4" x 11'9" it covers a standard 8x12 floor plan, large enough to seat a full living room grouping or a 8-seat dining table with the chairs pulled back on the rug.