e exact period when this industry was introduced into that country is
not known. Tradition has it that long before the days of Alexander the
Great, rugs were woven at Shuster, then the capital; and being a luxury,
they were woven solely for kings' palaces, and on the finest gold warp.

The Persians having been an industrious and civilized people for many
centuries, and a large proportion of them having been accustomed to the
nomadic and pastoral life, it is a natural inference that love of gain
and the demand from the growing towns for articles of beauty and luxury
gave the wandering tribes the opportunity to utilize their wool by
supplying the demand for rugs. Encouraged as it was under the reign of
Shah Abbas, the industry prospered. Various kings of Persia cultivated
certain branches of art and industry, but Shah Abbas especially gave a
decided impetus to rug-weaving. He had a particular fondness for the
beautiful creations of this industrial art, and the rugs made during his
reign bring fabulous prices. After his death a reaction followed. Rugs
fell into comparative disuse, and the manufacture deteriorated until
about 1850, when, thanks to the demand in Europe, the industry revived.
To-day it is in a flourishing condition and the most important source of
Persia's income.

Persians, from the Shah to the peasant, sit upon rugs when eating, with
cushions placed behind them. It is only the lowest beggar who has no
rug. The rugs used by the Persians themselves are rather small, the
larger ones being exported to foreign countries. Usually the rooms of
Persian homes are small, and narrow in proportion to their length;
consequently only small rugs are required. But even when the rooms are
large, the Persians prefer several small rugs to one large rug, as a
floor covering. They often first cover the hard-beaten ground with a
matting of split reeds, and then lay over this so many small rugs that
the matting cannot be seen. This custom is becoming more and more common
in Persia. With their taste in design and color, they produce beautiful
effects.

[Illustration: ANTIQUE PERSIAN RUG

SIZE, 15.3 x 6.7

_The tree design in its best and strongest elements is typified in this
wonderful and most interesting Persian fabrication of olden time. The
harmony of design and color is most impressive, and the size of the rug
enhances this effect. It was evidently woven by one weaver, and years of
patient labor and the greatest skill mu