Red Kazak Lamb Wool Rug
This red Kazak lamb wool rug was hand knotted in Afghanistan and measures 396 x 308 cm, about 12.2 square metres. The field is a warm camel brown, so the red comes from the medallions, which sit in rust, brick, blue, sage, ivory and gold inside a wide cream border.
The design of this red Kazak lamb wool rug
The field holds five columns and seven rows of octagonal medallions. Each one has a small diamond at its centre and a ring of stepped motifs around it, outlined in dark navy so the shapes stay sharp against the brown ground. Small rosettes in red, blue and ivory fill the gaps between them.
The medallions are not all one colour. Some are brick red, others are blue, sage green or gold, and a few are ivory with navy detail, so each row shifts in colour as your eye moves across it.
The main border is cream, with a band of small red, blue and green star motifs running along the outer edge. A narrow inner border of small blue and rust motifs separates the cream from the field, and fine guard lines frame the whole rug.
Kazak designs from the Caucasus
Kazak rugs revive the bold geometric designs first woven in the Caucasus. The name comes 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 and Pakistan have revived these designs, so the old patterns live on in new rugs made to last. This red Kazak lamb wool rug follows that tradition with octagonal medallions set in a cream border.
How it is made
Weavers in Afghanistan tie every knot by hand on a loom, one at a time. Our records note vegetable dyes. The rug is listed as hand knotted and double knotted, in lamb wool.
Lamb wool comes from a young sheep’s first shearing, which gives the pile a fine, soft hand. Because each knot is tied separately, the octagons line up row by row, and the lines between them stay straight across the width of this red Kazak lamb wool rug.
Sizing it for your room
At 396 x 308 cm, a red Kazak lamb wool rug this size is a large room-size piece. Under a three-seat sofa of about 2.2 m, it runs about 88 cm past each end, so the front legs of the sofa and two armchairs can rest on it around a coffee table.
In a dining room, a table of about 240 x 100 cm for eight seats sits with about 78 cm of rug at each end and 104 cm along each side. That leaves 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 11 am to 4:30 pm, to see this red Kazak lamb wool 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.
