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Afghan Rugs and Carpets: Rugs from Afghanistanv

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Afghan rugs are genuine, often charming — and usually phenomenally inexpensive. At present, it is very hard to sort out which ‘Afghan’ rugs are actually made in Afghanistan, and which are made in Pakistan by Afghan refugees. At least a million Afghans, including hundreds of thousands of rug-weavers, fled Afghanistan during its war with the Soviet Union and subsequent civil war, settling especially in Pakistan and Iran. To my knowledge, very few rugs are shipped directly from Afghanistan to the United States or Europe today. Instead, most are transported to Pakistan, then shipped abroad. So both Afghan rugs made in Pakistan, and Afghan rugs made in Afghanistan, are shipped from Pakistan, often making it impossible to sort out where a particular Afghan rug is actually woven. Perhaps it doesn’t really matter. Presumably at some time many of the refugees will return to Afghanistan and resume rugmaking there. For the purposes of this discussion, we will assume that all rugs made by Afghan
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Oriental Rug Dyes. What you need to know.

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True or false –  A  colorfast wool rug can bleed? TRUE . The rug may be colorfast in CERTAIN situations. For example, with a regular cleaning or wash, with a neutral or acid side cleaning solution, the rug could be perfectly fine. No dye migration (aka “bleeding”). But, under different circumstances, it could absolutely have dyes migrate and bleed out.  Some possible culprits – using high heat, using high pH solutions, keeping the rug wet too long (or in a flood), or exposure to pet urine stains. True or false – A dye fix/lock/stabilizing solution used by cleaners “sets” a wool rug’s dyes? FALSE . The solutions available in our industry for professionally cleaning rugs do not “set” the dyes. They STABILIZE them. This means with wool or silk rugs that are NOT colorfast, but test “stable” with the intended stabilizing solution, that you have a WINDOW OF TIME to clean them. (FYI – with silk rugs that window is MUCH shorter than with wool rugs. You better know what you are doing if
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Moths, Bugs, and Rugs (What you need to know)

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Wool rugs are woven to last HUNDREDS of years. In our industry a rug today is not considered to be “antique” unless it is woven before 1900. They are made to last, and many of them do when properly cared for. However, you put a rug in the wrong conditions, with the wrong bugs, and you can lose that rug in under a year. Eaten away by moths, carpet beetles, or other bugs feeding on other contaminants the rug fibers are holding on to. This 8’x10′ Turkish rug was completely eaten away while in storage several years. Rugs must be CLEANED and with protective treatments before placing into storage. Worms and waste cover this once beautiful rug. Storage is the place where the worst damage occurs. This makes sense because the bugs like dark, undisturbed places to make their meal. In homes, with rugs in use, this bug damage will be found under large furniture. Moths and carpet beetles love to eat under a sofa that is never moved to vacuum under it.  And damage will be found UNDERNEATH t
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Islamic and Indian Art at Bonham’s London

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A Dragon Carpet Currently displayed at the Museum of Islamic Art

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LARTA at Battersea Park The London Antique Rug & Textile Art Fair (LARTA), the British capital’s sole annual exhibition focused on high-end antique carpets and textiles, takes place on 24-29 January 2017. This year, the fair has a different format with a new location in Battersea Park, as part of the Decorative Antiques & Textiles Fair. HALI will be present, bringing magazines as well as textile and carpet books. 

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5TH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON AZERBAIJANI CARPETS Traditions and Innovations 17–20 OCTOBER 2017 BAKU, AZERBAIJAN ABOUT The 5th International Symposium on Azerbaijani Carpets (ISAC 2017) is an international academic lecture programme organized in partnership with the International Conference on Oriental Carpets (ICOC). It takes place in Baku, Azerbaijan 17–20 October 2017. The organizers, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences and ‘Azerkhalcha’ Joint-Stock Company, will collaborate on a multiple-venue cultural programme during the Symposium. Two special temporary exhibitions will be presented at the Azerbaijan National Museum of Art (ANMA) and the Azerbaijan Carpet Museum. An 8-day HALI Tour in Azerbaijan and Georgia will follow the Symposium, 21–28 October 2017. More information AZERBAIJANI ENGLISH RUSSIAN
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LARTA antique rugs and textiles fair in London

LARTA at Battersea Park The London Antique Rug & Textile Art Fair (LARTA), the British capital’s sole annual exhibition focused on high-end antique carpets and textiles, takes place on 24-29 January 2017. This year, the fair has a different format with a new location in Battersea Park, as part of the Decorative Antiques & Textiles Fair. HALI will be present, bringing magazines as well as textile and carpet books. 
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