Calcutta (Kolkata) Rugs

Kolkata (formerly spelled Calcutta) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, the city is approximately 80 kilometers (50 mi) west of the border with Bangladesh.
It is the third-most populous metropolitan area in India. The Port of Kolkata is India’s oldest operating port and its sole major riverine port. Kolkata is regarded as the Cultural Capital of India.
Under British, prisoners in India worked as weavers. They weaved not only rug and carpet but also silken textile, dhurries, and probably cashmere. Antique carpets woven by prisoners enjoy royal Persian designs.
Kolkata’s prison had probably a leading role and it served as collecting place for other Indian prisons’ productions. These may be roughly branded as “Calcutta”.
Also Romanized as dhurri, durrie, durry or dari, a dhurrie is an Indian term for a foldable hand-woven used originally as floor covering or bed cloth. Depending to their sizes dhurries may have various usages, from a table-cloth to a wall-hanging.
Technical aspects and the structure of Calcutta Rugs

Calcutta rugs are mostly single-wefted. Most of them have cotton foundation and woolen pile. Knots are asymmetric (Persian). Both rug and carpet sizes are common.
Dhurries share structure with various types of kilim such as slit weave, eccentric and interlocking wefts. Dhurries are made from four types of materials: cotton, wool, jute, and silk, as well as in variety of combination of all these materials.

Dyeing and painting of Calcutta Rugs

Indian pieces with Persian designs do not follow necessarily the original palettes. Unlike Persian designs, here the patterns are done without dark outlines. This may lead to a more naturalistic feature. Rusty red and yellowish camel make a combinations popular in Kolkata like elsewhere in India. Dhurries have usually multicolored palettes.
Designs and patterns of Calcutta Rugs

Persian designs have been traditionally copied in India since the Mughal Era. The Persian designs used to be royal and city-style ones rather than tribal Persian types. Herat, Tabriz, Isfahan, Joshaqan, Kashan and Kerman designs are the most popular designs used.

Antique rug and carpets woven by prisoners designed with Indo-Persian floral patterns as well as British emblems and coats of arms. Dhurries mostly designed with multicolor stripes, or other simple patterns.
