10 x 15 Persian Kashan Rug, Deep Red Field with Navy Medallion and Corner Spandrels, the Iconic Classic Kashan Pattern

A true room-size Persian Kashan at 10 by 15 feet, woven in 100% wool on a 100% cotton foundation at approximately 180 to 220 KPSI, in mint never-used condition despite being roughly forty years old. This is the classic Kashan medallion-and-corner composition, the single most recognized Persian rug pattern in the world, the look that shows up on television sets, in films, in design magazines, and on the floor of the Shark Tank set itself. For the full background on this weaving tradition, see our complete Persian Kashan rugs guide.

Design and Motifs

The composition is the textbook Kashan layout, executed with a confident, well-balanced hand. A pendanted central medallion sits on the deep red field, drawn on a navy ground with an ivory and sky blue inner medallion of palmettes and rosettes, finished with pendant cartouches reaching toward the top and bottom of the field. Matching navy spandrels anchor each of the four corners and mirror the medallion drawing in miniature, framing the field on the diagonal. Between medallion and corners the field is filled edge to edge with continuous floral arabesque, scrolling vinework, palmettes, small floral sprigs, and rosettes in red, ivory, sky blue, gold, salmon, and emerald. The main border carries the classic Kashan palmette-and-vine repeat on a navy ground, framed by multiple ivory and light blue guard borders running delicate floral chain repeats. This is the pattern most people picture when they hear the words Persian rug, and the reason for that is simple, Kashan defined it.

Colors and Placement

The palette is the classic Kashan combination of deep red field, navy medallion and border, with sky blue, ivory, gold, salmon, and emerald running through the floral drawing as accents. The depth of the red and the saturation of the navy give this rug exceptional warmth and presence, and the colors are completely fresh because the rug has never been on a floor. At 9'10 by 15'3 this is a true 10x15 room size, large enough to anchor a long dining room with a 10 to 12 seat table and chairs pulled back, lay the full length of a great room or library, fill a primary bedroom comfortably with the bed centered on the rug, run end to end down a long living room with all furniture on the rug, or work as a statement floor in a formal hotel lobby or executive office. The classic palette reads beautifully against rich wood floors, traditional millwork, oil paintings, antique furniture, brass and bronze accents, and works as the foundation of formal traditional, English manor, Tudor, Georgian, federal, and old-world transitional schemes.

Origin and Construction

Kashan, in central Iran in Isfahan province, is one of the oldest and most important weaving centers in Persia, with a workshop tradition tracing back to the Safavid court and a reputation for producing the most recognizable and commercially celebrated rug pattern in the world. This particular piece was woven approximately forty years ago, fully hand-knotted in 100% wool on a 100% cotton foundation at 180 to 220 KPSI, and remarkably it has spent its life rolled in storage rather than under furniture. The pile is full, the colors are fresh and saturated, the foundation is clean and even on the reverse, and the rug presents essentially as a new piece with the maturity of properly aged wool and natural dyes. Kashan rugs in this size, age, and condition are increasingly difficult to find at the source, which is part of why this exact pattern has become the cultural shorthand for a Persian rug, including its frequent appearance on the set of Shark Tank.