Red Afghan Super Kazak Rug
This red Afghan super Kazak rug was double hand knotted in Afghanistan in lamb’s wool and measures 154 x 95 cm. Natural dyes colour the wool. A red field carries a column of three medallions, framed by a cream border with blue, red and gold motifs. Its size suits a bedside, an entrance or the space in front of a single armchair.
The design up close
The top and bottom medallions are cream-edged, with gold and blue centres. The middle medallion is a cream diamond with a green-edged rim and a small red heart. The top and bottom medallions sit an equal distance from the middle one. Around them, small cream, blue and green star flowers are scattered across the red ground, with tiny motifs in the spaces between.
The cream border is wide and busy. Its inner band carries small red, blue and gold motifs, and a narrow green and cream stripe separates it from the red field. Each colour in the border also appears in the field, so this red Afghan super Kazak rug reads as one piece rather than a frame added around it.
Where Kazak designs come from
Kazak rugs take their name from the Kazak (Gazakh) district of the southern Caucasus, on the borders of today’s Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. Weavers there made thick, boldly coloured rugs with large geometric medallions, stars and hooked motifs in deep reds, blues and ivory. In recent decades, weavers in Afghanistan have revived these designs, so pieces like this one carry an old pattern into new rooms.
How a red Afghan super Kazak rug is made
This rug is double hand knotted, so each knot was tied by hand, row after row on a loom. Turn this red Afghan super Kazak rug over and the design shows on the back, with the small irregularities that only hand knotting leaves. Natural dyes colour the wool, and small dye batches can leave gentle shifts of tone across the red ground, which weavers value as a sign of handwork.
Sizing it for your room
At 154 x 95 cm this red Afghan super Kazak rug covers about 1.5 square metres. A bedside, an entrance or a hallway corner gives the medallions room to be seen. It is too small to sit under a three-seat sofa, so use it as a feature rather than a base for furniture. Because the red ground is strong, a lighter floor and a simple sofa let the medallions and cream border have room to be seen.
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 11 am to 4:30 pm, to see this red Afghan super Kazak rug in person. If you would rather judge it in your own room, with your own light and furniture, book an in-home viewing and we will bring a selection to you.
Browse more Kazak Rugs, or ask about a custom made rug in your own size and colour. Read more about Caucasian and Kazak rugs.
