Get a Free Estimate :
Khazai rug cleaning and repair logo

Kashgar Rugs

Kashgar is an oasis city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan. Kashgar has served as a trading post and strategically important city on the Silk Road between China and Persia for over 2,000 years, making it one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the World. Today the city has a population of over 500,000. Located in the westernmost extremity of the Tarim Basin (which is occasionally called Kashgaria, as well as Eastern or Chinese Turkestan), Kashgar can be reached from the east by roads along both the southern and northern edges of the Taklamakan Desert. One can travel from Kashgar to the southwest, along the Tashkurghan gorge and across the Pamirs to the Oxus and Indus basins, while the easily surmountable passes of the Terek-davan lead to the west to Fergana, a land that often shared Kashgar’s historical destinies. Eastern Turkestan is inhabited by Uighurs who are traditionally rug weavers. The Kashgar rugs are difficult to distinguish from the similar ones of Khotan (Hotan) and Yarkand (Yarkant).All three types were formerly called Samarkands in Western markets.
Kashgar Xinjiang China Uighur rug merchant in his shop

Technical aspects and the structure of Kashgar Rugs

A KASHGAR SQUARE MAT, TARIM BASIN, EAST TURKESTAN, EARLY 19TH CENTURY
New Kashgar rugs have symmetric (Turkish) knots on a cotton foundation and are double-wefted. Antique pieces were either all-wool or all-silk. Some eighteenth-century rugs contain metallic threads. All-wool rugs have typically asymmetric (Persian) knots. The knot counts differ between 40 and 100 in woolen pieces, while silken ones’ density reaches to 400 knots per square inch. Various sizes could be found, including square-shaped ones.
Kashgar silk rug ca. 1800

Dyeing and painting of Kashgar Rugs

Various types of painting are possible among Kashgar rugs, depending on date and the raw materials used. Antique silken pieces were typically painted with blue white and rosy. Yellow, red and purple dominated pieces may also be found. Gold and silver threads may be used in this type. Cinnamon and red are dominant in antique woolen pieces. Inspired by Persian designs, Kashgar painters use dark outlines about the various forms. This feature is a key to Kashgar pieces amongst other Eastern Turkestan rugs.
Kashgar carpet, late 18th–early 19th century
Kashgar carpet made between 1950 and 1960 in East Turkestan (China)

Designs and patterns of Kashgar Rugs

Kashgar designs could be described as a fusion between oriental styles. One could recognize features of Chinese, Turkmen and Persian designs gathered together in a single design. All-over designs, such as lattice, are preferred here. Nevertheless medallioned pieces are not rare. The principal differences between Kashgar rugs and the other two Xinjiang (Khotan and Yarkand) products are a tendency on the part of the former toward Persian draftsmanship, Persian-oriented border patterns.
Rare and Unusual Antique Kashgar Rug with Mughal Pattern
A SILK AND METAL KASHGAR RUG
Kashgar carpet, late 18th–early 19th century
Call Now