IRANS.âAlthough neither a city nor district of Persia is called Iran, a well-defined class of rugs is known to the trade by that name. They are woven by some of the old Iranian stock dwelling principally in the province of Irak-Ajemi. These people follow no particular pattern or colour scheme of their own, but to a large extent copy those of a few well-known Persian classes; yet in other respects their rugs have a noticeable individuality. They are woven with a Ghiordes knot and so loosely that if the rug be observed from the front, as it is bent backward in a plane parallel to the direction of the weft, the foundation threads of warp and weft, which are of cotton, will show distinctly between the knots. Each of the two threads of warp encircled by a single knot are equally prominent at the back. Ordinarily the threads of weft cross twice between the rows of knots, but occasionally they cross only once, as in Hamadans. Many of the fabrics regarded as Sarabends, Feraghans, and even Hamadans are in reality Irans, which on account of their inferior workmanship are much less valuable.
_Type Characteristics._ _Colours_, principally blue and red, with minor quantities of ivory, yellow, green, and brown. _Knot_, Ghiordes. Knots to inch horizontally, six to eleven; perpendicularly, seven to eleven. A half knot as it appears at back is frequently longer, measured in the direction of the length of the rug, than wide. The rows of knots are not pressed down closely, so that the warp is noticeable at back. _Warp_, cotton; each of the two threads encircled by a knot is equally prominent at back; they are not closely strung, so that each half knot stands out distinctly. _Weft_, cotton; a thread of weft of coarse diameter as a rule crosses twice between each two rows of knots, and only rarely crosses but once. The weft is conspicuous between the knots at front when the rug is bent backwards. _Pile_, wool of medium length. _Border_, generally four to six stripes. _Sides_, a heavy double overcasting that is generally brown or black, but sometimes red. _Lower end_, a narrow web. _Upper end_, a narrow web and loose warp fringe. _Texture_, loose. _Weave_ at back is of coarse grain. _Usual length_, five to ten feet. _Usual width_, two fifths to three quarters length.