Summary of Antique Laver Kirman Rugs
Laver Kirman (also known as Lavar Kerman and Ravar Kerman) carpets are part of the Persian floral rug-making tradition. The finest antique Laver Kirman carpets offer quintessential refinement and romance. Ivory and sand-toned grounds (seldom-found in other styles of 19th-century Persian carpets) predominate, enhancing the ethereality that is the hallmark of this Persian city carpet style. The drawing of the designs in best antique carpets is fluid and lyrical with floral motifs of almost infinite detail. Their pattern language is frequently comprised of all-over patterns of botanical motifs or a central medallion encircled by dense foliage.
The weaving center of Kirman in central Persia has been an esteemed carpet producer of court-inspired designs since the royal patronage of the Safavid dynasty over 400 years ago. In 2010, a 17th century Safavid Kirman sold at auction for $9.6 million – over twice the highest price ever paid previously for an Oriental rug.
The province and city of Kirman in Central Persia continued to make extraordinary carpets throughout the 19th century and turn of the 20th century. Satellite workshops were set up in Kermanshah in Western Persia, where densely patterned carpets with deep ruby or burgundy fields were usually produced. The term “Laver Kirman”, while alluding to an actual town, is used in the antique rug market almost exclusively to denote the finest qualities of Kirman rugs.