Turkmen Rugs | Tekke, Yomut & Bukhara | Djoharian
Turkmen Rugs – tribal art in deep red-brown
Turkmen rugs are among the oldest and most characterful tribal rugs of the Orient. Knotted by Turkmen nomadic tribes such as Tekke, Yomut, Saryk and Ersari, they are recognised by the characteristic gül – a repeating tribal emblem medallion – and by their unmistakable depth of red-brown colour. At the Djoharian Collection you will find hand-knotted Turkmen rugs in pure wool.
Turkmen Rugs from the Djoharian Collection
"Turkmen" denotes not a city but a group of nomadic tribes whose territory spans Turkmenistan, northern Afghanistan and north-east Persia. For centuries these tribes knotted some of the densest and finest tribal rugs of all – originally for their own use in tent and camp.
The gül – emblem of the tribes
The defining feature of every Turkmen rug is the gül: a mostly octagonal medallion repeated in strict rows. Each tribe has its own gül – the Tekke gül, the Yomut gül, the Salor gül – so that tribal origin can be read from the pattern. The well-known Tekke gül is often called the "elephant's foot" design in the West. It is complemented by geometric secondary motifs and narrow, precisely drawn borders.
Colour & material
Characteristic is the deep, warm red-brown to oxblood colouring, obtained from madder root, complemented by ivory and dark blue. They are knotted from lustrous, robust shorn wool, often at a very high knot density – which makes Turkmen rugs exceptionally durable.
Bukhara, the "Gentleman's Carpet" & related terms
In the trade, Turkmen rugs are often sold under the name Bukhara (Bochara) – after the old trading city through which they were once sold, not their place of knotting. The finely knotted Tekke Bukhara, with its restrained elegance, is traditionally known as the "Gentleman's Carpet", and is also marketed as "Royal Bukhara". The hatchli (a door hanging with a cross design) likewise comes from this tradition.
How to recognise a genuine Turkmen
A genuine Turkmen has a warp of wool or goat hair, which gives it a soft, supple handle. Because of the wool warp, these rugs often do not lie perfectly flat and ripple slightly – this is not a flaw but typical, and is easily corrected with a rug underlay. They are knotted with both the asymmetrical Persian knot and the symmetrical Turkish (double) knot.
In older pieces with natural dyes, the colour itself tells the story: as the dye water was frequently reused, faint traces of other pigments appear within the tones – an unmistakable sign of genuine natural dyeing. Their remarkable colour-fastness was achieved by fermenting the wool, the fibre maturing over a long period in an earthenware pot in the sun.
Djoharian Collection – since 1967. With roots in the Grand Bazaar of Tehran, we verify every piece for provenance and quality. Expert advice, fair production under Label STEP, direct import.