The Karakul Collection

Karakul is our name for a small, closely selected group of new rugs hand-knotted in Afghanistan, where weaving is still very much a household craft rather than an industry.

What holds the collection together is not one pattern but one standard. Every piece is chosen by us individually, for its drawing, its colour and the evenness of its knotting, and every piece is one of a kind: the rug you see is the rug you receive. Browse the full Karakul collection.

Design

The Kohinoor design is a free, contemporary composition without a classical border. Down the centre runs a long axial medallion built from nested arches: strands of small beads, broad apricot crescents and two navy pendants, opening at head and foot into fan-shaped crowns.

On either side hang chandelier- and necklace-like motifs, with tiers of beads and fine drops falling from them, and between them sit scrolling cartouches, small stars and diamonds. At head and foot, curling bands of scrolls and cartouches in brick red and navy close the field. Beneath it all, a faint ghost lattice of vines and arches shows through the washed ground, giving the rug depth.

Colour

The ground is a warm, softly washed sand, drifting in places into pale grey-green and light stone. Against it the drawing is set in navy, brick red and apricot, with smaller touches of saffron, rose and pale blue.

The effect is lively but never loud: the colour sits in fine lines and small motifs rather than large areas. It suits rooms with natural wood, terracotta, linen and warm white walls, and holds its own beside both contemporary and older furniture.

Material and Quality

The pile is 100 % wool, hand-knotted onto a cotton foundation. The knotting is fine enough to carry the tiny beads, drops and scroll lines cleanly. At around 22 kg the rug lies flat and settled on the floor.

In the Room

At 242 x 304 cm (7 ft 11 in x 10 ft 0 in, 7.4 m² / 79 sq ft) this is a classic room-size format in the 8 x 10 ft range:

• Sitting room: holds a sofa, two armchairs and a coffee table, with the front legs of the seating on the rug.
• Dining room: takes a table for six with the chairs still on the rug when pulled out, in rooms from about 3.5 x 4.5 m (11 x 15 ft) upwards.
• Bedroom: placed under the lower two-thirds of a king or super-king bed, it frames the bed generously on both sides.

In London, this is a rug for a dining room in Islington or a warm, book-lined sitting room in Primrose Hill, where its jewel-like detail rewards a closer look — and it reaches London within 2–7 working days.

Specifications

Responsible Origin · Label STEP

Djoharian is a Label STEP Fair Trade Partner. Label STEP is the international fair-trade organisation for hand-knotted rugs, standing for fair pay for the weavers and no child labour.

Djoharian — Since 1967

Our family business was founded in 1967, with roots in the Grand Carpet Bazaar of Tehran — five decades of trade and connoisseurship behind every piece we offer.

Delivery, Service and Care

Every piece is inspected in our atelier in Lohr am Main, Germany, before dispatch. Secure and fast worldwide shipping, fully insured. We are happy to send further photographs or a short video of the rug in daylight, and offer personal consultation in our showroom or by video call. For expert washing and repair we run our own professional rug cleaning service.