Hand-knotted rugs

Each knot tied by a person — the most durable construction.

The oldest, slowest and longest-lived rug construction. Hand-knotted pieces are the reason antique rugs still trade — a discipline that our looms in Bhadohi continue to run to specification.

A finished round hand-knotted rug in a hotel lobby at PiHue, Bhadohi

How the construction works

The cotton warp is stretched vertically on a loom. Weavers tie individual knots around pairs of warp threads — the Persian (Senneh) or Turkish (Ghiordes) knot — row by row, beating each row down with a comb, cutting each knot flush with a curved knife. The pattern is read from a graph-paper knot map hung behind the loom.

100–400 KPSI typical
Wool, silk, wool+silk
Cotton warp & weft
Custom sizes

Finished pieces

Hand-knotted in the room

An oval hand-knotted rug installed in a hotel guest room — Oval · hotel

A hand-knotted rug anchoring a modern living room — Living room

An heirloom-quality hand-knotted Persian rug drape — Heirloom-quality Persian

A weaver's hands tying individual knots around warp threads on the loom — Every knot · individually tied by hand

A single 250 × 300 cm hand-knotted rug at 100 KPSI holds around 300,000 knots. Each one is a small human decision — which is why no machine has ever matched a hand-knotted rug's price at auction, and no machine ever will.

Silk in wool

Highlights that catch the light

Hand-knotted silk rug in progress on the loom — Silk hand-knotted · on the loom

Silk being knotted into a rug as accent highlights — Silk accents · knotted into a wool field

Where hand-knotted belongs

Programmes that need heirloom quality: signature pieces, showroom anchors, gallery collections.
Traditional patterns — Persian medallions, herati fields, Bhadohi's own designs.
Silk accents: highlights of mulberry silk knotted into a wool field for direction-dependent shimmer.
Retail and hospitality programmes willing to pay for construction that outlasts fashion.

What we verify

KPSI on random rows against specification.
GSM (actual weight ÷ actual area) against specified GSM.
Size against ±3% tolerance.
Colour against approved lab dip and strike-off under standard light.

A custom hand-knotted rug in progress on the loom at PiHue, Bhadohi — On the loom — a hand-knotted rug in progress.

Bundles of wool yarn prepared before weaving a hand-knotted rug — Wool yarn issued to the loom before knotting begins.

Hand-knotted vs hand-tufted — a plain comparison →

Frequently asked

What is a hand-knotted rug?

A hand-knotted rug is a rug in which every knot is tied by hand around the warp threads on a loom. Each knot is a separate operation; a 250 × 300 cm rug at 100 KPSI holds several hundred thousand of them. It is the oldest and most durable rug construction — the reason antique hand-knotted rugs still trade after a century.

What is KPSI and what counts as high?

KPSI stands for knots per square inch. 100 KPSI is a solid quality rug; 200 KPSI is fine; 300 KPSI is very fine; above that lies collector territory. Higher counts allow finer design detail and denser pile.

How long does a hand-knotted rug take to make?

Days on the loom depend on size, knot count and number of weavers. A single 8 × 10 ft high-knot-count piece routinely takes months. The knotting speed is set by human hands and is not accelerable.

Want this construction for your line?

Send an artwork or a brief and we'll return quotation, KPSI and material recommendation, and a sampling plan the same working day.

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