Bakhshi Carvansarai in bazaar of Kashan, Iran · Town setting only, not evidence of local manufacture or current visitor access.
Amir Pashaei · CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons; resized/re-encoded JPEG)
Taken on 9 August 2020, 18:17:10 · Source metadata and photograph visually checked 24 October 2026; no visible watermark.
Photograph source · Wikimedia CommonsA field observation record
- 01
Observe
Record material, structure, joins and wear before interpreting a pattern or city label.
- 02
Document
With permission, photograph the whole object, reverse, edges and any maker mark; retain repairs in the frame.
- 03
Separate claims
Keep maker, production location, point of sale and proposed age as separate statements, with their evidence.
Setting
Kashan stands where the central plateau meets the Dasht-e Kavir, with the Karkas mountains to the west. The old town is a district of courtyard houses, a covered bazaar and several restored merchant mansions.
Why this place matters for craft
The city's name is embedded in the Persian word for tile (kashi), which writers often cite as evidence of an early ceramic industry, though the etymology is debated. Silk velvet and fine carpet weaving are both recorded here in the Safavid and Qajar periods; a number of surviving looms belong to family workshops.
Three histories behind one city name
Kashan can introduce ceramics, luxury weaving and carpets, but those histories do not progress as one uninterrupted workshop story. A medieval tile, a velvet textile and a later carpet have different materials, uses and documentary records. The city's ceramic reputation should not be used to attribute a new bowl without a maker statement, nor should a famous silk carpet stand for every textile sold in the bazaar.
When comparing periods, keep object dates and collection attributions visible. A motif may move between textiles and architectural decoration without proving that the same makers produced both. Historical names and modern commercial labels also shift. Precise medium, dimensions and source records give a more useful framework than claims of a timeless local style.
Velvet and brocade at close range
Velvet has pile raised above a ground weave; cut pile changes its appearance as light and viewing direction change. That sheen is an optical effect, not proof of silk. Photograph the reverse and edge where possible, and ask about fibre composition and the construction of both the pile and ground. A printed imitation and a woven velvet require different descriptions.
Brocade uses additional patterning threads within a woven textile. A metallic surface may contain a strip wound around a core, rather than solid precious-metal wire. Request the maker's material terminology in writing. Heavy metallic floats can catch during handling, and an old fabric should not be stretched or repeatedly turned simply to demonstrate sparkle.
What the silk carpet can and cannot show
The illustrated museum carpet supplies a historical comparison, not a model for assessing current prices. Begin with the complete composition: central field, border sequence, proportions and the way small details remain legible across the whole. A close photograph without the full rug can exaggerate fineness while concealing missing ends or later restoration.
For any offered silk rug, distinguish pile fibre from foundation fibre. A mixed construction may be accurately described as having silk pile on a different foundation. Lustre, touch and a photographic colour shift cannot independently identify the fibre. Do not perform burn tests or remove material from an object; a valuable textile needs non-destructive specialist assessment.
A workshop visit with useful questions
Ask whether the loom is producing the textile displayed beside it and which stages happen on site. Drawing, warping, weaving and finishing can be shared among different specialists. A demonstration is valuable learning, but it should not become an unsupported statement that every piece in a showroom came from that loom or that a technique has survived unchanged.
Keep a record of the maker, production location, fibres and any outsourced stages. For older textiles, add condition and ownership information. Avoid direct sunlight during display, support fragile fabrics across their width and ask a conservator before wet cleaning. Confirm visits and access locally; historical accounts cannot establish a workshop's present opening arrangements.
Objects, evidence and attribution limits
| Object or claim | What to examine | What it cannot prove |
|---|---|---|
| Cut-pile velvet | Pile, reverse and separate ground/pile fibre statements | Directional sheen cannot prove silk. |
| Metal-thread brocade | Patterning threads, floats and metallic strip construction | A gold colour does not establish gold content. |
| Kashan-attributed carpet | Complete composition, foundation and collection history | Museum attribution cannot authenticate a similar market rug. |
Common questions
- Are all Kashan textiles made of silk?
- No. Ask for the fibre composition of each component and distinguish a material claim from a city label.
- Can a historic carpet establish a modern workshop lineage?
- No. That requires records about the workshop and people, not just a similar design.
Sources and further reading
- Encyclopaedia Iranica · Carpets
Historical and structural context for Iranian weaving; not authentication of an individual market textile.
- Canadian Conservation Institute · Caring for textiles and costumes
Preventive care and handling principles; older or unstable objects require individual conservation advice.
- The Met · Ilkhanid Period
Context for medieval Iranian ceramic and architectural arts, separate from present-day textile production.
Editorial draft, not independently checked by a named craft specialist. References provide context, not authentication or confirmation of current visitor access.
Quarters, bazaars and workshops
| Area | What is there |
|---|---|
| Kashan bazaar and Timcheh-e Amin od-Dowleh | Covered market with a domed trading court; textile and copper stalls nearby. |
| Weaving workshops in the old quarters | Small velvet and silk operations, usually behind unmarked doors and visited by arrangement. |
What to look for on an object
- Silk velvet — Cut pile that shades differently as the cloth is turned; the reverse shows the binding structure, not a printed image.
- Metal-thread brocade — Metallic weft floats that sit on the surface and can be felt as slight ridges.
These notes are for learning to look, not for authentication. No description here certifies an object, its age or its origin.
Practical notes
- Rose water distilling happens in the surrounding villages in late spring and is a separate trip from the city bazaar.
- Textile workshops are small and often not retail; approaching through a bazaar seller is the usual route.
- Workshop addresses, bazaar hours and market days change; confirm locally before travelling.
Season: Spring, especially the rose harvest weeks in May, and autumn.
Used in these crafts
A silk weaving technique producing a cut or voided pile on a foundation weave, used in Iran for garments, cushion covers and furnishing panels, with figured Safavid velvets among the most studied survivals.
A figured silk weaving technique in which supplementary wefts, often including gold- or silver-wrapped thread, create pictorial or floral designs on a silk ground.
A hand-knotted pile textile woven across Iran in city workshops, village looms and pastoral camps, distinguished by regional structure, palette and design vocabulary.
Square polychrome tiles painted with several overglaze colours and fired together, allowing large architectural schemes to be produced faster than cut tile mosaic.
A technique of architectural revetment in which monochrome glazed tiles are cut into small individual pieces to a template and set together, glaze face down, into a mortar bed to form complex polychrome patterns and inscriptions.
A ceramic decoration in which metallic oxides are painted onto a glazed surface and fired in a reducing kiln to produce a metallic sheen, associated especially with Kashan.
Stonepaste wares painted in cobalt blue under a clear glaze, produced in Iran with strong dialogue with Chinese porcelain, especially in the Timurid and Safavid periods.