DOROKHSH

Dorokhsh is a currently uninhabited village situated on a hill northeast of Birjand. It was abandoned in 1065 after a disastrous earthquake. During the last decades of the 19th century it produced a good quantity of rugs, mainly for the French market. The fine, compact rugs from Dorokhsh were among the most beautiful from Khorasan. The patterns were often made without cartoons: the basic element was the botteh, repeated on the entire field in even rows, alternating directions. In most cases the botteh are green against an amaranth background, but there are some rugs with blue or black backgrounds.