Indian Rug Designers
The fact that some rugs are so much better than others is a natural result of the superior skill of the makers. Weavers are like other workers, some doing perfect work, some indifferent, and others very poor. But the quality of the rugs offered for sale in this country depends also upon the knowledge and the conscience of the wholesale buyer at the place of manufacture. When the buyer for an importing establishment brings over quantities of rugs not all of which are artistic, the question may be asked: "Why do you not always select rugs that are beautiful?" He may reply that it is his business to get those that will sell, and that as there is a great variety of taste among his customers he must try to please every one; or he may say that he buys a thousand rugs at a time, and does not see them individually. It is in the retail shop that the final purchaser may pick and choose.
The most famous rugs of the Orient have been selected with great care by men who have special knowledge of the subject, and they are owned by museums and connoisseurs. Some have been brought to this country by distinguished soldiers and statesmen, to whom they have been presented by potentates as tokens of respect. Others have been obtained through the fortunes of war.
The Knotting
Except in the Soumak and the Khilim, which have the flat stitch, there are only two kinds of knotting used in Oriental rugs. These knots are called the Persian or Sinna, and the Turkish or Ghiordes.
In the Persian manner of knotting there are more knots to the square inch than in the Turkish, and the result is a finer surface. Often the Persian knotting is so fine that the surface of the fabric is like velvet. The Persian knot is tied in such a manner that one end of the pile yarn extends from every spacing that separates the warp threads. It is made in such a way that a noose is formed, which tightens as the yarn is pulled. Occasionally it is turned in the opposite direction, and executed from left to right. In this case two threads of yarn are employed, this of course making the pile twice as thick as in the other.
The Turkish or Ghiordes knot has the yarn twisted about the warp threads in such a manner that the two raised ends of the pile alternate with every two threads of the warp.
