Rugs have been in existence for thousands of years but because they were made from man made fibres such as wool or cotton, very few have survived to the modern day. It is clear from the few surviving rugs that Ancient Royalty valued rugs not just as luxury items but also as status symbols reflecting the riches and quality of their weavers. Emperors employed skilled weavers to produce huge & extravagant rugs for their palaces.

The Mongol Emperor Akbar valued rugs so highly that he brought his own Persian rug weavers with him when he conquered India in the 16th Century. He first introduced rug weaving to the country and its still exists today in similar form. So Royalty has been encouraging the development of weaving for many years but rugs have been around for many thousands of years as practical implements. As with any great craft, rug weaving started from extremely humble beginnings, especially in comparison to where we source our rugs from today.

Rugs solved many problems for early civilisation. They could be used to protect from cold winds, driving rains & hard floors particularly among nomadic communities. Contemporary tribes like the Beduoin still weave and utilise rugs for all these purposes today.

Rug weaving depended upon the materials provided by domestic animals like sheep and cattle or crops like cotton. Those tribes that didn’t have these materials normally didn’t make rugs although Amerindians of Coastal North America produced blankets and wall hangings from hard grasses and animal hairs. However, rugs as we know them only flourished in areas with the right natural resources.

As rug weaving progresses patterns were added using dyes and special weaving techniques such as knotting. Patterns came to reflect the natural surroundings of the tribes and more often than not also included symbols of the religious beliefs and thoughts of the weavers themselves. Rugs were designed in pleasing geometric shapes and also to tell a story or form a name through symbols.

Rug weaving was most common in the cold, dry areas & hot dry areas such as the East, Far East & South America. The climate in these areas was conducive to weaving and rugs were more sought after in these climates. Rug weaving spread as various empires conquered each other and knowledge was exchanged. In the 12th Century Spain became a very important area for historical rug production. In France in the 17th Century rug Henry IV pushed weaving to new limits when he commissioned the famous Savonnerie workshops to make rugs for his various palaces.

Today, most rugs are machine made to a very high standard although hand made rugs are still very popular in the Far East. Patterns that once had a strong meaning are now decorative and all kinds of rugs are now available all over the world.

Take a moment to check out our rugs for sale and filter through our range to find your perfect rug.

Take a moment to check out our rugs for sale and filter through our range to find your perfect rug. We have a collection of sizes, styles and colours for you to choose from ranging from coloured large rugs to small runner rugs.