9' x 12' Wool and Silk Oriental Rug | Tabriz Design Medallion | Brand New, Never Used

This is a workshop-woven Oriental rug made in China, hand-knotted in wool with silk highlights over a cotton foundation and drawn in the classic Tabriz design idiom of a central medallion floating on a dense floral field. It has never been on a floor: the pile stands full and even, the fringes are clean and untrimmed, and the colors are exactly as woven. At 9' x 12' it is a true room-size piece, the standard footprint for a sofa group or a 10-seat dining table, and it sits comfortably alongside other 9 x 12 area rugs while offering a level of drawing and silk detail most rugs in this size never attempt. Every rug we sell ships with a certificate of authenticity confirming that it is genuinely hand-knotted.

Design and Motifs

The layout follows the Tabriz formula closely. A black lobed medallion sits dead center, its core opened into a beige and rose rosette wheel surrounded by 16 small radiating cartouches, with sharp black pendants running north and south along the length. Four quarter medallions form the spandrels, filled with curling beige arabesques and small bouquets, and a delicate scrolling outline separates them from the field. Between medallion and corners the red ground is filled edge to edge with a curvilinear vine system: shaded palmettes, 8 petal rosettes, carnations, tiny lanceolate leaves and small serrated cloud bands, each blossom outlined in a contrasting silk line so the drawing stays legible. The main border is a broad black band of alternating large palmettes and leafy arabesques, framed by beige guard stripes of running rosettes and a plain red outer band. The corner resolutions are properly turned, meaning the border pattern meets itself cleanly at all 4 corners rather than being cut short.

Color Palette: Deep Red, Black, Beige and Ivory

Red is the anchor, a deep saturated tone closer to garnet than to brick, and it reads slightly darker in the angled photographs than in the overhead shot because the pile catches light differently in each direction. Against it, the medallion and main border are worked in a near-black that gives the composition its weight and keeps the floral work from turning busy. The mid tones do the rest of the work: soft beige and ivory in the spandrels and guard borders, dusty rose and salmon pink in the rosettes, muted sage and forest green in the leaves, and hints of gold in the arabesque scrolls. The silk content sits in the highlights, so the pale flowers and the beige scrollwork shift and shine as you walk past while the wool ground stays matte. It is a warm, formal palette that sits well with mahogany and walnut furniture, cream walls and darker hardwood.

Made in China: Tabriz Design Weaving and Quality

Chinese workshops have been weaving the great classical layouts, Tabriz medallions above all, for decades, and the better ateliers produce exactly what you see here: a high knot density, a short even clip that lets fine detail survive, and silk used sparingly where it earns its keep. The reverse shown against the tape measure tells the story, with small tight knots in regular rows and the design reading almost as clearly on the back as on the front, which is the simplest test of a genuine hand-knotted piece. The wool is spun for durability rather than softness alone, the cotton warps are firm, and the selvedges and fringes are finished by hand. For a buyer who wants the drawing and presence of a formal medallion rug in a 9' x 12' footprint, in perfect never-used condition, this is a lot of weaving for the money.