Significant Tribal Expression
The beauty, variation, and versatility of the designs found in Moroccan Berber carpets has brought them to the forefront as collectable objects of art as well as stunning statements in home decor. The spontaneity and boldness of the design features, whether abstract or patterned, elevates these carpets beyond other orientals in the lasting freshness of their effect on interior environments.
Moroccan carpets have always been woven for personal use and therefore have retained the
Chichaoua, Rabati, Ait Ouaouzguite characteristics of each tribal region in a rather pure way. Some outside design elements appear in urban carpets due to historical contact with people from Anatolia, Eastern Europe and farther East. The Berber carpet designs, to this day, are particular to the tribe of origin and vary greatly even within a particular region. They are characterized by strongly creative weaving, individuality, and inspired irregularities that appear as the rug progresses. These conceptual surprises prove the Berber weavers' preferences for flexibility and creativity over consistency and predictability of composition.
High Atlas
The High Atlas Mountains stand tall in the central part of Morocco. Sprawling in a southwest to northeast direction and having the highest peaks in Morocco, the climate variations are significant. Toward the south and at lower elevations, the milder climate has fostered a rug weaving style of finer pile, kilim or flat weaves, and multi-technique carpets which include pile, flat weave, and embroidered areas. These are some of the finest weavings of rural Morocco.
Ait Ouaouzguite EmbroideryThe Ait Ouaouzguite confederation, in particular, produces beautiful, intricate carpets of pile, flat-weave and mixed technique - some of the most sophistocated in Morocco. Many are embellished with detailed embroidery and present with bright and varied colors balanced with panels of undyed wool. This creates a mosaic like effect of noteworty beauty. Weavers from the Zenaga group, farther south, produce exciting carpets rich in individuality and random design features.
Middle Atlas
Carpets from this northern section of the Atlas Mountains, the Middle Atlas, where the terrain is ruggedly mountainous and the weather is harsh in the winter, are characterized by high pile and a loose structure formed by either the Berber knot or symmetrical knot. In the northern part of the region tribes such as the Beni Ouarain and the Beni Alaham produce white or cream carpets with beautiful assymetrical designs woven of brown or black wool. Highly typical of the mIddle Atlas region are carpets with an overall diamond grid pattern that can range from fairly monochromatic black, brown, and white to bold and bright reds, yellows, blues, and greens. Here one will find designs that at first appear to be regular and patterened, but upon closer examination reveal inspired surprises of designs that change as the weaving evolves.
Between Meknes and Rabat lies the Zemmour region. Carpets from this region are noted for
Fine Zemmour Carpettheir symmetry and geometric design, often organized into sections of columns or horizontal stripes which are composed of smaller repeated design elements. These desings are closely related to others of the Middle Atlas but tend to be more vibrant with much red as an overall color theme.
Haouz de Marrakech (Plains of Marrakech)
The Haouz, or plain, region found between the Atlas Mountains and the Atlantic is populated with tribal clusters who produce a wide range of carpet designs. Carpets from the Boujaad region are especially expressive with bold creativity of design and color and irregularities that speak with great freedom of expression. Another beautiful design style, very different from those from Boujaad, is characterized by reddish-orange background enhanced by randomly scattered motifs or symbols that have been passed down through genertions of weavers. The background in these rugs can be fairly monochromatic or can consist of a fluid field of warmth ranging from deep blood red to bright orange and back again.
Oulad Bou Sbaa Carpet ApronThe Oulad Bou Sbaa tribes of Morocco, Western Sahara, and Mauritania, weave rugs of great patterned beauty with selvage edges defined by dark brown or black triangles, often of goat hair, and with warp threads of goat hair. At the ends one will find large brightly colored aprons of flat weave with boldly colored stripes that finish the rug with emphasis. Older versions of these rugs reach extreme lengths due to their original use as floor and tent walls in their nomadic dwellings.