Gabbehs are long-pile carpets woven by nomadic peoples such as the Qashqai people who live around the Zagros Mountains in southwestern Iran for their families. Every step of the process is done by hand, from shearing the sheep's wool to spinning the yarn, dyeing it with plants, and weaving it by hand. The patterns incorporate the scenery of the day and feelings for the family, and no two are alike. Gabbehs were originally a necessity to lay on the floor to protect their lives in a natural environment with extreme temperature differences.
Skills passed down from parent to child
The technique of weaving Gabbeh is passed down from mother to daughter as part of daily life. There is also a custom of giving a daughter a Gabbeh that she has woven herself before getting married, and it has been considered proof that a daughter who can weave a good Gabbeh has mastered the skills of housework and daily life. This weaving technique and sensibility are nurtured not from textbooks but through everyday life. For this reason, the story of the weaver's life and family is imbued in each and every thread.
The enormous amount of time it takes to complete
Making a Gabbeh is a quiet dialogue with time. Even a small size can take several weeks, a large one several months, and in some cases more than six months. It is not uncommon for it to take several months to weave one square meter. Knots are added little by little every day, and if a mistake is made, it is undone and redone. The accumulation of such painstaking work is what gives shape to a single Gabbeh.
The unique value of handwoven fabrics
Machine-woven rugs can be mass-produced in a short period of time, but hand-woven Gabbehs are only produced in small quantities at a time. Because they are woven with a focus on the sense of touch and sensibility rather than production efficiency, the number of rugs produced is inevitably limited. The high price comes from the time and effort required and the unique story that is woven into them. The price of a Gabbeh not only reflects the materials and techniques used, but also the seasons and memories that the weaver has experienced.
