Cobalt Vintage Persian Rug
This cobalt vintage Persian rug is a hand knotted wool rug made in Iran, measuring 406 x 292 cm, or about 11.9 square metres. A scalloped cobalt medallion sits at the centre of an olive and cream field, with a wide floral border around it.
The design up close
The medallion is a large oval with a scalloped edge and pointed ends. Its ground is cobalt blue, filled with olive, cream and pale blue flowers and curling stems. A smaller lozenge in sand and olive sits at its centre, ringed with tiny scrolls.
Where the blue has worn lighter, it fades to a pale sky blue and ivory, so the medallion looks softly erased in places. Those patches are the clearest sign of a vintage rug, and they spread across the middle instead of sitting in one spot.
The field around the medallion is olive and cream, covered in small blue sprigs and leaf shapes. In the corners, the pattern curves in towards the centre. Several narrow stripes and a wide main border finish the rug, the border carrying olive and cream flowers on a lighter ground with blue stems. This cobalt vintage Persian rug keeps its blue in the centre and lets the border stay quiet.
Persian rugs
A Persian rug is a rug hand knotted in Iran. It is made one knot at a time on a loom, usually from hand-spun wool, and a room-size piece can take a weaver many months. That is why no two are alike.
How a cobalt vintage Persian rug is made
Weavers tie each knot by hand on a loom, row after row, then trim the pile level. Wool forms the pile, and it is hand knotted in Iran as every Persian rug is. Because every knot is tied by hand, the rows carry small differences in spacing and tone that mark it as handwork.
Colour in your room
Cobalt blue with olive and cream sits comfortably with cream or stone walls, timber floors and linen or leather furniture. The blue in the centre picks up navy cushions or a blue armchair, and the olive in the field works with green plants and brass lamps.
Sizing it for your room
At 406 x 292 cm, this cobalt vintage Persian rug covers about 11.9 square metres. In a living room, a three-seat sofa of about 2.2 m leaves roughly 93 cm of rug showing past each end, so the sofa, armchairs and a coffee table can all sit on it.
Under a dining table of about 240 x 100 cm, the rug leaves about 83 cm at each end and 96 cm along each side. That leaves plenty of room for chairs to slide back without leaving the rug.
Looking after your rug
Vacuum it on a suction-only setting, or with the beater bar switched off, so the brush does not pull at the knots. Turn it around every six to twelve months so sun and foot traffic wear it evenly. Blot spills with a clean white cloth and cold water rather than rubbing them in. When it needs a full clean, choose a cleaner who washes handmade rugs by hand.
Put a good underlay beneath it. It stops the rug sliding on timber or tiles, adds cushioning and takes some of the wear off the pile. Moths like wool in dark, quiet spots, such as the part of a rug under a sofa, so vacuum those areas often and lift the furniture now and then.
See it before you buy
Visit our showroom at 307 Penshurst St, North Willoughby, open every day from 10 am to 4:30 pm, to see this cobalt vintage Persian rug in person. If you would rather judge it in your own room, with your own light and furniture, book a home trial and we will bring a selection to you.
Browse more Traditional rugs, or ask about a custom made rug in your own size and colour. Read more about Persian carpets.
