Berber carpet

Berber carpets are carpets hand-woven by the Berber autochthones in North Africa and the Sahara. The carpets come in traditional and modern designs, which are distinguished by different knotting patterns, dyes and fabric textures.

The origin carpet weaving by the Berber populations dates back several millennia. The hand spun cloth they created was named for the individual tribe, and they used natural fibers to create cloaks, rugs, and other fabrics.

Modern industrialized Berber carpets are distinguished by a loop pile construction type that gives a similar appearance to the distinct knot of traditionally woven Berber carpets. The modern carpets usually contain small flecks of dark color on lighter shades of background colors resembling a natural undyed version of the traditional carpets. They generally consist of a plain color mix with no pattern, and are relatively cheap and durable. Popular for areas with significantly heavy use such as offices. The distinctive knot texture and appearance of traditional hand-woven Berber carpets today are generally woven in brightly colored designs that are different from other oriental rugs.

Handmade and usually homemade Berber carpets are still an active industry in many rural areas of Berber countries. Many Berber families earn their primary income from building-up carpets manually and selling them in local markets, merchants and tourists. Traditional Berber carpets differ from modern mass-produced Berber carpets that are usually found in industrialized markets. They often employ cultural designs and are typically made of natural materials

Today, there are numerous types of modern Berber carpet made from a wide variety of materials, Nylon, Olefin fiber, and wool are the most frequently used materials, Except Tunisian Berber carpets and rugs usually called “Mergoum” which still preserve a know how inherited from ancestral weaving methods. Tunisian authorities are still controlling every piece to guarantee quality and that 'Berber' spirit in designs, patterns and symbols knotted so only wool is permitted with a total ban of any synthetic material, then each rug or carpet is sealed with a red wax sign (of Tunisian handicrafts authorities).

In other countries Olefin is the most frequently used and most affordable material, and carpets with blends of the different materials are also available.

...
Wikipedia