Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Speaking about beauty, when it comes to Oriental and Persian rugs, it may depend on many elements such as the age, the quality of materials, designs and colors. The rugs woven in the Middle East and beyond in Asian countries are beautiful because of splendid colors that are harmoniously combined with each other. In many cases, the mixture of specific colors depended either on the lack or surplus of dyes and their natural sources.
The selection of colors in Persian rugs have never been left to chance. Every nomadic tribe, village or city workshop has a specific combination of colors and a secret way for the extraction of natural dyes. Pakistan is famous for the red and black combination in Bokhara rugs, Persian carpets for their navy blue and white colors and the Heriz carpets for their pastel shades.
The rugs’ patterns can feature multiple or only two colors. White is combined with brown, blue, navy, black, brown and red.
Some of the most beautiful Oriental rugs rarely feature more than eight colors. But there are cases when there are only two colors. A brilliant white design on a brown background or a brown design on a white background are two of these cases.
White color in Oriental culture represents purity and neutrality. This color can be found in all the rugs, but it prevails in specific types like the Ivory Kashan rugs. Almost all the Oriental and Persian carpets feature light shades of white, gray and beige.