The interest and involvement of Europeans in the later nineteenth and twentieth centuries gave enormous incentive to Oriental rug production, but it also had negative effects. The most important of these was in the realm of dyes. At about the mid nineteenth century German scientists developed synthetic, chemically based dyes that involved far less time and labor than vegetable-derived colors. By the late 1860's and 70's they had become common in Turkey, and a decade or so later, in Persia and Central Asia as well. However, these colors soon proved to be fugitive on exposure to light, or when washed. This resulted in the production of many carpets with badly faded colors or ugly dye runs that resulted from routine cleaning. At the same time western industrialization also introduced the commodity of machine-spun wool, which helped in the production of carpets on an ever-increasing scale. Eventually in the 1920's and 30's western technology perfected synthetic dyes. This now made it possible to produce huge dye lots of uniform color.

The ultimate result was the loss of the lovely variegated color effects or “abrash” that were common with less controllable vegetable dyes, and that lent so much character and charm to antique carpets. Also, the machine spun wool imparted a uniformity of texture which, along with the uniformity of color, tended to make the effect of light on the surface of the carpets less animated and rich. While the designs of Oriental carpets remained true to tradition, these technical changes gradually led to a readily perceptible difference in quality between new rugs and those produced before, say, 1920. As a result, the concept and the commodity of the “antique carpet” as the superior, the more desirable, and therefore the more expensive type became established. Throughout the twentieth century, many well- made rugs continued to be produced across the Middle East, but they could never compete for the the most discerning or the most demanding buyers, who preferred the depth of color and reflective quality of vegetable dye and hand-spun wool, and who were willing to pay for it.

In the last twenty years or so there has been a revival of traditional weaving, relying once again on on vegetable dyes and hand-spun wool. This development began in Turkey as a government-funded experiment, Project DOBAG, designed to recover or restore a lost traditional craft. To some extent this program also focused on reviving traditional designs, which had degenerated somewhat in the course of the twentieth century. Its success prompted similar attempts in Afghan and then Persian weaving, and eventually in virtually all Oriental rug-producing regions. Today it is once again possible to encounter outstanding carpets which are not only well woven and nicely designed, but which also have the textural and color quality of the finest antique rugs.

Modern Gabbeh from Rugs by Robinson Collection