Gray Damask Hand-Knotted Wool and Bamboo Viscose Rug

Gray Damask Hand-Knotted Wool and Bamboo Viscose Rug — silver-gray ground, damask scrollwork carved in low relief, 205 × 306 cm (6'9" × 10'0"), knotted densely by hand in India. The pile yarn is wool with cotton; the foundation beneath is cotton; the motifs are bamboo viscose.

01Where the Damask comes from

One piece at this size. Damask is a textile pattern before it is a rug pattern: a symmetrical, turning scroll that came out of silk weaving and has never quite gone away. Here it is worked in bamboo viscose against a wool ground, then the ground is cut back by hand so the scroll stands slightly above it.

02What the yarn is

Two things happen at once — the pattern casts its own small shadow, and it glints where the viscose lies. Silver-gray sits between warm and cool without committing to either, which is why it will take a room built on white and light oak and equally a room built on charcoal and brass. The knot count in India was set high enough that a scroll this fine holds its curve rather than stepping. The pile is a wool and cotton yarn; the foundation beneath it is cotton; the motifs are bamboo viscose.

03The mark of slow weaving

The relief carving is done afterward, by hand, with shears — one motif at a time along the length of the rug. Viscose is the fiber that dictates the care here: nothing wet at home, and nothing steamed.

04How it feels underfoot

A professional wash, when it needs one. Hand-knotted in India; the knot count is high. The pile yarn is wool with cotton; under it a cotton foundation; bamboo viscose in the motifs. Damask scrollwork carved back by hand so it stands in low relief. Silver-gray: it works against white and oak, and against charcoal and brass. 205 × 306 cm (6'9" × 10'0") — a full living room. The viscose passages catch the light; the wool ground stays matt. No home wet cleaning and no steam.

05Up close to the pattern

Professional washing only. A single rug in this size. Put damask cushions or curtains in the same room and the rug stops being a separate decision.