Rugs from China and the Far East

Traditional rugs of China are usually distinguishable from those of Western Asia at a glance. Red is seldom used, and when it appears it is pale. Blue is much more common, and some Chinese rugs have three or four different shades of blue, usually set against a yellow or ivory ground. Other colours such as green and orange are unusual.

There are theories that China learned rug weaving from traders or migrants from the Near East, while other theories speculate that weaving was introduced from the Persian world by westward migrants from Central Asia.