ARDEBIL

Ardebil is the most important city in eastern Azerbaijan, situated in an impenetrable area near the border with the former Soviet Union. The city's textile tradition has ancient roots: the famous Safavid carpet with medallion that is now conserved in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London was found in the city's main mosque, even though there is no documented proof that it was woven here. Today, rug production is quite vast and there are rugs of all sizes with colours that vary according to the markets for which they are made. The designs are often floral with a central medallion, based on patterns from the city of Tabriz. More often they imitate the designs of the rugs made in the nearby Caucasus, especially from Shirvan with large scale use of silk for the background colour. There are many Ardebil rugs with herati motifs arranged in concentric lozenges according to the Senneh model.