Fine Pishawar Pakistan Rug, Hand Knotted

Peshawar is the capital of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Situated in the broad Valley of Peshawar near the eastern end of the historic Khyber Pass, close to the border with Afghanistan, Peshawar’s recorded history dates back to at least 539 BCE, making it the oldest city in Pakistan and one of the oldest cities in South Asia. As the center of the ancient Gandhara region, Peshawar served as the capital of the Kushan Empire; and was home to the Kanishka stupa. Peshawar was then sacked by the White Huns, before the arrival of Muslim empires. The city was an important trading centre during the Mughal era before serving as the winter capital of the Afghan Durrani Empire from 1757 until the city was captured by the Sikh Empire in 1818, who were then followed by the British in 1849.

Peshawar rugs, also called Ghazni rugs or Chobi rugs are handmade rugs from northwestern Pakistan, where Afghan weavers migrated over the years. This style of rugs features traditional Persian styles & Turkish Oushak style rugs. They are hand-knotted with vegetable dyes & have a thinner pile & antique patina. So if you are looking for rustic rugs or pale faded rugs that look like antique or worn, these rugs are beautiful.

Recently many Afghan weavers have gone back to Afghanistan & some of the Peshawar rugs are being made in Afghanistan. Common designs are Oushak, Sultanabad, Ziegler, Mahal, Amritzer, Agra, Tabriz & Caucasian.