The ultimate manual to Bokhara rugs: everything you need to know

Introduction

At times referred to as Turkmen rugs, Bokhara rugs are hand-made   carpets designed to be placed on the floor. The name Bokhara is the city in   Turkestan that was known to be source of the rugs. They were traditionally   made by nomadic tribesmen in Central Asia before mass production started in   Iran, India and Afghanistan.

Original Turkmen rugs were hand-crafted using such locally   available materials as wool obtained from herds, vegetable dyes and other   natural dyes. Thanks to technology, these rugs are now commercially produced   in Iran and Afghanistan using synthetic materials of different colors. These   are mostly for export to other countries. Even so, it is very easy to   identify a hand-made rug from machine-made rugs.

The original Bhokaras are classic pieces and have of late become   very popular owing to their unique designs and appeal.

Characteristics

Bokhara rugs are traditionally deep red in color. They also   feature octagonal designs of elephant foot. Unlike the rugs, the designs are   in most cases in dark blue, brown or black. Because they were hand-made by   different tribes, authentic rugs feature different design shapes. The   foundation material for making these rugs is wool, which produces the soft   and classic touch of the rugs.

Types

Different types of rugs are available. They   include:

• Salor Bokharas – These are traditionally   hand-crafted by Salor tribesmen living toward north of Afghanistan. They are   of very good quality and are rare in the market. They are deep red and   feature octagons in two rows. Each large octagon also features a small   octagon within with the exterior of the large octagon featuring flower   designs.
• Tekke Bokharas – These are the most popular   of all Bokhara rugs. They are traditionally hand crafted by Tekke tribesmen.   There are royal and prayer Tekke Bokharas. Royal Bokharas are general rugs   red in color. They feature rows of elongated octagons and diamond designs   that join both vertically and horizontally. On the other hand, prayer rugs   are strictly for conducting prayers. They differ from royal rugs in that they   feature crossbars that divide the rugs into four sections.
• Yomud Bokharas – These are traditionally   hand crafted by Yomud tribesmen found across Central Asia. In addition to   their deep-red color, they are divided into four sections by a Greek cross.   They are traditionally designed with small octagons in each of the four   sections.

There are also other types of Bokharas that are otherwise not   common and not popular. They include Beshiir Bokharas that   feature zig-zag patterns along the edges and Pinde   Bokharas that feature prayer niches.