Point of View
Survival Guide to Buying a Carpet
By Keith Birmingham
May 11, 2003, 14:55

Handmade carpets have always charmed, fascinated, and confused us. The charm and fascination that people experience is both pleasurable and at times emotional. However, the confusion that is often borne of the frustration of not being able to distinguish one carpet from another usually restricts the potential carpet collector or first-time buyer to relying for information about the various carpets on display on the carpet merchant. But you should always remember that when the merchant imparts specific information to you about a particular carpet or rug that interests you, he will usually craft his sales pitch in his favor to try and sell the carpet to you. This sales pitch intensifies when some dealers become aware that the potential customer lacks any basic knowledge about carpets.

However, listening to the carpet merchants can be useful as you can try to draw from them general carpet information, and at the same time try to gauge their knowledge and experience about the subject. In essence, the responsibility for purchasing a carpet rests with the buyer and is not, as is commonly assumed, with the dealer.

In order to increase your chances of choosing a carpet of your own choice without coercion or total reliance on the dealer, patient, methodical, preparation on your part is required. The primary preparation required before entering a carpet shop is to educate yourself about carpets via books and the Internet. Peruse that information and try to understand as much carpet terminology as possible, but not to the point where it may create confusion. Try to find out whether you are drawn to the formal, curvilinear, city carpets, or the charming geometric tribal carpets. Talk with your friends and find out who has already bought carpets. Listen to their appraisals and reservations.

When you feel confident to enter a carpet shop alone, remember, the merchants will be eyeing you in the same way a hovering hawk surveys its prey on the ground. The merchants will instinctively read your body language when you are looking at their carpets. Your body language can inadvertently give away vital information to the dealers. Try to view their woven treasures calmly, and even if you spot the carpet of your dreams remain composed and indifferent. If the dealers sense awe and appreciation on your part toward a particular carpet then the price of that carpet will, without doubt, increase.

While you are browsing around the shop, the salesman could engage in small talk with you, which may sound innocuous, but the salesman is softening you up. He wants to catch you off your guard, so he can slip in one or two telling questions about carpets. He is, with great subtlety, plumbing the depths of your carpet knowledge and your responses will determine how far he can push you price-wise, and how liberal he can be with the truth regarding specific carpet information.

Therefore, make sure that your responses are as succinct and close to technical facts as possible in order to convey to him that you know your stuff.

Attach discipline to your carpet visits and insist on only viewing either curvilinear or geometric carpets. Never view both styles at the same time, because the conflicting designs and colors can become quite overwhelming.

If for example you decide to view curvilinear carpets only, then ask to see the three grades of wool or silk and predominately beige carpets from Nain, Iran. In other words, ask to see a low quality Nain noolah, a medium fine Nain sheeshlah (Habbebion) and a top quality Nain Charlah.

View these carpets from the front and back and train your eye to recognize and distinguish between the three grades. Ask the dealer to unravel a warp thread from each carpet and show you how each warp thread varies in size according to quality. Request to see some examples from Tabriz, Iran, and ask about the knot count, which is known in the carpet trade as the raj (rule). Remember that 40-60 raj is medium quality, and that 70 raj and above is considered fine quality.

Next on your list for perusal should be the dark rich red and blue carpets from Esfahan. Make sure that these carpets have silk warps. At this juncture of carpet perusal, you will be ankle-deep in curvilinear beauty and your carpet merchant will be getting impatient and dropping sledgehammer hints about buying something. Ignore any pressure tactics, remain steadfast, and ask to see some Iranian silk Qums.

The silk Qums will usually be found tightly rolled standing upright in disciplined rows like soldiers. The weavers from Qum only began producing their elegant carpets during the early part of the 20th century.

Therefore, antique Qums do not exist. When viewing these carpets ask the dealer to also show you the silk Qum copies from Marragah, Iran. These imitations are often coarsely woven and stiff, and when placed alongside a silk Qum, are easily distinguishable from the genuine Qum. However, when these carpets are viewed alone they could easily be passed off as original Qums to the untrained eye.

Furthermore, the weavers from Marragah mischievously weave the name Qum into their carpets, which only adds to the confusion. Requesting to view these carpets also subtly conveys to the dealer that you are aware that these copies exist. The dealer will then make sure that he does not attempt to sell you a silk Qum copy from Marragah for an original Qum. For sure, your carpet dealer will now be quite impressed with your inside knowledge.

If you visit other carpet shops and repeat the above process, you will succeed in training your eye to distinguish between the excellent, the good and the mediocre. In turn, your knowledge and your self-confidence will steadily grow from acorn to oak tree proportions.

It will be at this stage that you will be able to purchase a carpet on your own terms.

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