Craft comparison

Under review

Persian carpet vs Sermeh-duzi

فرش ایرانی · سرمه‌دوزی

Persian carpet: A hand-knotted pile textile woven across Iran in city workshops, village looms and pastoral camps, distinguished by regional structure, palette and design vocabulary. Sermeh-duzi: A metal-thread embroidery technique in which fine gold or silver wire, or wire-wrapped thread, is couched onto velvet or other heavy cloth to create raised, reflective patterns, historically used on ceremonial garments and furnishings.

Side by side

Persian carpetSermeh-duzi
Persian nameفرش ایرانیسرمه‌دوزی
CategoryTextiles · Knotted pileTextiles · Metal-thread embroidery
Materialswool, silk, cotton, natural-dyesmetal-thread, silk, cotton
Techniquesknotted-pile-weavingmetal-thread-couching
Regionstabriz, isfahan, kashan, kerman, qom, shiraz, sistan-baluchestanisfahan, kerman
Periodssafavid, qajar, pahlavi, contemporaryqajar, pahlavi, contemporary
Motifsshah-abbasi, herati, boteh, eslimi-arabesqueeslimi-arabesque, boteh, shah-abbasi
Current vitalityLiving traditionAt risk

What they share

  • Materials: silk, cotton
  • Regions: isfahan, kerman
  • Motifs: shah-abbasi, boteh, eslimi-arabesque
  • Periods: qajar, pahlavi, contemporary

How to tell them apart

  • Materials such as wool, natural-dyes point towards Persian carpet.
  • Materials such as metal-thread point towards Sermeh-duzi.
  • Persian carpet typically involves knotted-pile-weaving.
  • Sermeh-duzi typically involves metal-thread-couching.
  • The stated place of making is a useful clue, but never proof on its own.

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Disclaimer

This comparison is educational and built from entries still under review. It cannot confirm what a particular object is.