Heriz carpets, from the imperial palace to modern homes

Heriz carpets, from the imperial palace to modern homes

Heriz (Heris) is an important carpet weaving center in Eastern Azerbaijan in Iran which is located about 90 km northeast of Tabriz city. The name of Heriz is famous in Europe and America because of the importance of the carpets of this area. Heriz carpets have particular characteristics that make both new and old carpets famous that in the world the antique Heriz carpets are used in important imperial palaces both in Europe and in America. Heriz carpets are extremely resistant, they are suitable for quite large and very busy environments and they resist naturally. In case of taking good care of them, they can live for hundreds of years. Some researchers say that due to the existence of copper mines around this zone, the copper inside the water makes the wool of the sheep durable with high quality.

The main design of Heriz carpets is the large medallion in the center that covers the field of the carpet. If this medallion be in lozenge shape, the carpet gets “Haj Azimi” name, and if the medallion be in circle, the “Samad Khani” would be the name. If the medallion be on the plain field of the carpet, it is known as “Dash Khatoon”. In the old time, the carpet weavers from Heriz used to weave carpets without any map with using their memory, but recently they do it with using the proper maps to be more precise without errors.

In Heriz carpets, the patterns are the combination of stylized geometric designs with traditional motifs. This fact made Heriz carpets a traditional carpet that suits even in modern ambient. These motifs are coming from the traditional Persian motifs which are combined with the shape of the plants growing in that zone. The weavers unconsciously use the shape of these plants and change them to the motifs suitable for designing a carpet.

The colors of Heriz carpets are usually dark tones such as dark blue, dark brown, dark red, copper, and dark green; but it is possible to see light colors such as light blue, light pink, and beige in some cases. The nature climate of the Heriz zone gives the opportunity to the weavers to dye the materials with the use of natural and mineral colors. The contrasting colors of Heriz carpets make them suitable for both traditional and modern environment, therefore, the European market gives a special attention to these carpets.