How can I tell if a handmade rug is authentic?
Check the back
The easiest way to tell whether you have a real hand-knotted rug is to check the back. The back of a hand-knotted rug should be soft and flexible, with clearly visible knots in a pattern that mirrors the front of the rug. If some of those knots appear looser than others, that’s a good sign! Even the most skilled artisans won’t be capable of machine-like precision, so some unevenness is an indicator that your rug is handmade.
Check the dye
Genuine Oriental and Persian rugs are made with natural vegetable dyes that over the centuries have been found to not run. Checking if the dye is colorfast is a surefire way to tell if your rug is authentic or a cheap imitation. An easy way to check is to leave a damp cloth on a small, inconspicuous spot of the rug overnight. If any dye transfers to the cloth, it is not colorfast and risks running should you ever spill liquid on it in the future.
Check the fringe
In a real hand-knotted rug, the fringe is made from the excess warp yarns on either end of the rug after it has been cut out of the loom. Machine-made rugs will often emulate this look with a fringe that is either glued or sewn on after the fact. If your rug has a sewn-on fringe, it is not authentic—the fringe on hand-knotted rugs is always structural.
Check the material
Authentic Persian and Oriental rugs are always made with 100% natural fibers. Usually, this means a cotton foundation and pile made from wool, silk, or a combination of the two. If your rug contains any synthetic materials like polyester or polypropylene, it can’t be called a genuine Oriental rug.
Check the price
While this won’t be as reliable as checking how the rug is built, you should still consider the price when searching for a hand-knotted rug. This is especially important when buying online.
For many people, hand-knotted rugs are investment pieces and family heirlooms. While we won’t say it’s impossible to get a good deal, you should expect to spend a little more on handmade rugs. Making a hand-knotted rug is a difficult and time-intensive process. It might take a team of skilled weavers a year or more to complete a room-sized rug, assuming they are working full-time. Price tags of several thousand dollars are justified when considering the cost of premium materials and, in the case of Persian rugs, the price increase that comes with their scarcity. If you find a room-sized rug presenting itself as a genuine Persian or Oriental rug for only a few hundred dollars, there is a very good chance it is a fake.