Maslaghan / Mazlaghan Rugs
Guide to Maslaghan Rugs and Carpets
Maslaghan is a village due east of Hamadan in the Karaghan area near Kerdar and Nobearan. For many years those rugs were attributed Mosul and were thought to be Kurdish.
Maslaghan Rugs use the Hamadan Rug Weave
Single weft is called “Sennah Baft” or Hamadan weave. Here the wefts are rigid and the warps are sinuous. As you can see in the sketch the wefts are heavier than the warps. It is woven with symmetrical knots. Since there is only one shot of weft between each row of knots this shows every other warp which makes these rugs easy to spot.
Examples:
Mazlaghan Rug from Landry and Arcari
Hand-woven in Persia circa 1920.
Wool pile on cotton foundation.
Distinctive rugs woven in this village in the Hamadan district of Persia are easily identified by their red field with its jagged outline, large medallion and dark blue spandrels.
Maslaghan Persian Rug
Size 3’3″ x 4’6″.
Warps: Cotton
Weft: multiple wool singles
Ends: One end with loops and red and green herringbone pattern.
So when we add it up Cotton warps are common in Hamadan rugs but wool wefts with cotton are not. This is something Hubel notes in “the Book of Carpets” as typical of Maslaghan.
The field pattern is very different from the lightning bolt and medallion fields that we expect in Maslaghan rugs. But field pattern is not an important. What is a much better clue are the borders which are in the style of Maslaghan, the end finishes which are in the style of Maslaghan and the wool wefts. The size is right for a Maslaghan since we expect to see them in a sejadeh size like this one or in a Kenerah format.
Maslaghan Rug, Hamadan, Iran, Late 20th century. 2 foot 6 inches by 6 foot.
Structure: Symmetrical knot. 10 knots per horizontal inch and 10 knots per vertical inch. 100 per square inch (1550 per square decimeter)
Yarn Spin: Z.
Warp: Cotton, white.
Weft: Cotton 1 shots. white with occasional red wool .
Pile: 2 Wool singles.
Ends: warp fringe.
Selvages: 2 cotton overcast with red wool.
Further Notes: Plush rug with a meaty handle, very substantial rug in New Condition.
Maslaghan Runner
The wool in this Maslaghan runner is better than usual from the city of Hamadan and is more like the tribal areas in its quality and silkiness. The weave is very high for a Hamadan. Overall it is a better than average Hamadan and the colors are very good as well — none of the neon colors used in the post embargo rugs. This is just a very substantial and pretty rug that will stand up to years and years of heavy use.
Origin: Hamadan, Iran, late 20th century
Size: 2ft. 6 in. x 6ft.
Structure: Symmetrical knot. 10 knots per horizontal inch and 10 knots per vertical inch. 100 per square inch (1550 per square decimeter)
Yarn Spin: Z.
Warp: Cotton, white.
Weft: Cotton 1 shots. White with occasional red wool.
Pile: 2 wool singles.
Ends: Warp fringe.
Selvages: 2 cotton overcast with red wool.
Further Notes: Plush rug with a meaty handle, very substantial rug in New Condition. No holes, tears, rips or low spots. Long pile.
In Hamadan province there are 1500 villages, and each village produces an average of two types of Hamadan rugs. Note how different the various Hamadan rugs are despite their overall similarities. Contrast this with Romanian rugs where they are stamped out with cookie cutter uniformity. One of the reasons for the enduring popularity of Persian rugs is the wealth of individuality in very similar rugs.
Mazlaghan Persian Rug, 1904-5
Two Mazlaghan rugs from Northwest Persia, the longer dated 1322AH (1904-5CE), the other about 1900-20.
Sizes: 5ft.11in. x 4ft.2in. (1.80m. x 1.27m.) and 8ft.9in. x 4ft. (2.67m. x 1.22m.)
Condition: Both with areas of wear.
Early 20th Century Mazlaghan Village Rug
Origin: Northwest Persia, early 20th century
Size: 6ft. 6in. x 4ft. 3in. (1.98 m. x 1.30 m.)
Condition: Very slight, even wear. Outer guard missing at base. A good and well coloured example of this dramatic design group.
Mazlaghan Rug, West Persia, ca. 1930
Origin: West Persia, ca. 1930
Size: 125 x 76 cm
Condition: Minimal wear, overall very good condition.
Mazlaghan Persian Rug C. 1920
Northwest Persia about 1920. 6ft.3in. x 4ft.4in. 1. 91m. x 1.32m. Slight even wear overall.