Clients often ask which of these two we recommend. A beautifully supple, faded antique, or a vibrant newly knotted Persian rug. Our answer is – both!
Antique rugs carries the story of their past. The elegant muting of the natural dyes that occurs with the passing of years. It’s like comparing a bunch of freshly picked grapes and a matured wine. Neither is better than the other, it’s more about what your preference is at the time.
If the chosen Persian rug is going to be in an area with a lot of footfall, then a new rug can be a good choice. Antique rugs will still last for hundreds of years, but are a little more delicate. They are better placed in areas such as bedrooms, studies, and sitting rooms, rather than hallways or entrance halls.
Antique Persian rugs have a sinuous quality. This occurs because the fibres in the cotton ‘weft’, the base of the rug, become supple over time. This increases the flexibility of the rug, making it feel softer. The extraordinary qualities of wool are also revealed with the passage of time. Rather than becoming stiff and coarse, the pure wool and silk pile of a rug shines with increasing lustre.
Whether antique or new knots, you can rest assured that a genuine handmade Persian rug will not only stand the test of time, but benefit from it too.
