Undyed Wool Qashqai Totem Gabbeh, Iran (c. 1950)

This gabbeh is a soft and earthy vintage tribal weaving from mid-century Iran. Hand-woven by a Qashqai weaver, the rug presents a range of attractive natural hues in a harmonious composition.

Undyed Wool in Warm, Earthy Hues

At center is a trio of totems, each linking four serrated diamonds outlined in chocolate brown and filled with soft shades of camelhair, a radiant but rarely used rug material. This is set against a field of soft ivory-colored wool, warm and rich in hue.

The rug’s border is a stylized tribal adaptation of the classic running water motif, drawn with a playfully free hand. Its selvedges are a thick barber pole design of caramel and ivory wool.

Notably, the rug is woven on warps of black goat hair, an unusual testament to the use of natural materials in a traditionally pastoral weaving culture.

Tribal Artistry through Natural Materials

This piece is a gabbeh, a short-pile weaving used as a sleeping rug by nomadic herders. Until recently, gabbehs were made primarily for domestic use by pastoralists. The rug demonstrate the appeal of expertly processed wool in its natural, undyed state. With a pile that is soft and dense, it provides a firm cushion underfoot.  

Only since the 1980s have Western dealers and collectors begun to recognize and appreciate the graphic quality of gabbehs, which have a dramatic graphic quality that echoes the color field movement and the dynamism of twentieth-century art. Like flatweaves and other tribal productions, the expressiveness and originality of these rugs has contributed to a growing market for their decorative use and collectability in recent decades.

The rug was woven in the middle of the twentieth century by a weaver from the Qashqai tribe in southwestern Iran. Although the Qashqai are associated with brightly colored rugs, examples woven of undyed wool are also known, including the present piece (Opie, Tribal Rugs: Nomadic and Village Weavings from the Near East and Central Asia, 1992, p. 168-170).

Condition and Use

The rug is in excellent vintage condition. Its wool is soft and lustrous, and the piece will withstand heavy floor use. The original fringe is fully intact. 

Use of a rug pad is recommended to anchor the rug in place.