Hand-washed Persian rug cleaning — Tabriz, Kashan, Heriz, and every great tradition.
For more than a decade, the Cohen family has hand-washed Persian rugs from every major workshop — Tabriz, Kashan, Heriz, Isfahan, Bijar, Sarouk, Nain, Kerman, Malayer, and Qum. Every piece is inspected, dye-tested, and washed individually on our dedicated atelier floor. Never by machine, never off-site. Complimentary pickup across Manhattan, the Hamptons, Westchester, Greenwich, and Stamford.
Tabriz, Kashan, Heriz — and every great Persian workshop.
Each Persian tradition has its own foundation, its own dye chemistry, its own hand. We wash each one with the process appropriate to its construction.
Tabriz
Workshop rugs from northwest Iran. Technical precision, central-medallion drawing, exceptional knot count.
Kashan
Classic medallion design. Harmonious palette of deep reds, navy, and ivory. 100 to 800 knots per square inch.
Heriz
Bold village weaving. Oversized geometric medallion, earthy reds and rust, exceptionally durable mountain wool.
Isfahan
Court-style atelier weaving. Fine wool on a silk foundation, up to 1,000 knots per square inch.
Bijar
Known as the iron rug of Persia. Exceptionally heavy, dense foundation, restrained geometric drawing.
Sarouk
Fine pile, jewel-tone palette. American-market floral spray on burgundy and navy grounds.
Nain
Fine wool with silk highlights on an ivory ground. Delicate floral drawing, restrained palette.
Kerman
Soft palette, finely detailed drawing. Roses, palmettes, and panel designs in pastel tones.
Malayer
Village rugs of transitional design. Single-wefted, sturdy, often featuring Herati and boteh motifs.
Qum
Silk Persians. Sometimes more than 1,000 knots per square inch. Calligraphic, garden, and prayer designs.
How a Persian rug moves through our atelier.
Seven to fourteen days, calibrated to the age, fiber, and dyes of your rug.
Pickup & inspection.
Complimentary pickup from your home. Once at the atelier, our master artisan inspects the fibers, foundation, dyes, and any prior repairs — then writes the wash plan for your specific rug.
Dye-tested, hand-washed alone.
Every color is dye-tested before water touches the rug. Antique Persians and silks are washed individually with pH-balanced soap and temperature-controlled water — never in a batch, never on a machine.
Dried flat, returned home.
Dried flat on slatted frames — never tumbled, never hung. Hand-finished, wrapped, and returned to your home in better condition than the day it left.
Why Persian rugs are never machine-washed.
A Persian rug is hand-knotted at 100 to more than 1,000 knots per square inch on a wool, cotton, or silk foundation. The wool is greasy mountain fiber. The dyes are vegetable — madder for red, indigo for blue, walnut hull for brown, pomegranate skin for yellow — and they move under heat, friction, and alkaline soap.
A rotary brush will felt the wool, lift the dye, and split the warps. Dry-cleaning solvents destabilize the dye chemistry. Hand-washing adapts — water temperature, soap pH, contact time — piece by piece. It is the only method appropriate for an antique Tabriz or a silk Qum, and it has been the standard for fine Persian rugs for centuries.
The wash that earned its name.
The antique wash is a slower, hand-controlled bath calibrated to the age, dye chemistry, and foundation of an antique Persian. Water temperature, soap pH, and drying conditions are adjusted piece by piece — the only wash appropriate for vegetable-dyed wool and antique silk.
Us versus a standard cleaner.
Where the two paths diverge. Eight choices that separate an atelier from a cleaning service.
Cleaning Method
Horizon
Hand-washed by master artisans
Standard Cleaner
Rotary machine, generic chemicals
Pickup & Delivery
Horizon
Complimentary — by our team, in our truck
Standard Cleaner
Third-party courier (or your problem)
Antique & Silk Persians
Horizon
Conservation-grade, by hand
Standard Cleaner
Same process as everything else
Process Time
Horizon
7–14 days, properly done
Standard Cleaner
1–2 day machine ‘express’
Dye Stability Testing
Horizon
Tested before every wash
Standard Cleaner
Not tested — rugs lose color
Where Your Rug Is Cleaned
Horizon
Our family atelier, supervised
Standard Cleaner
Third-party wash plant
Restoration & Reweaving
Horizon
In-house, by hand
Standard Cleaner
Outsourced or refused
Inspection
Horizon
By hand, before any work begins
Standard Cleaner
Visual only, if at all
Ready to have your Persian rug cared for by our atelier?
Where we pick up your Persian rug.
Letters from across the Northeast.
A few of the rugs we've cared for — and the families who trusted us with them.
“They returned an heirloom Tabriz — the colors look exactly as my grandmother described them.”
“A 1920s Heriz I thought was beyond saving came back better than the day my parents bought it.”
“Our clients trust us with eight-figure homes. Horizon is the only atelier I send their rugs to.”
Questions, honestly answered.
What clients ask us before they hand over a rug — and how we answer.
How is a Persian rug actually cleaned?
Why hand-washed instead of machine-washed?
How long does Persian rug cleaning take?
Will my colors run during the wash?
Can you repair moth damage on a Persian rug?
Can you do color restoration on a faded Persian?
Can you repair fringes and edges on a Persian?
Do you pick up Persian rugs across Manhattan, the Hamptons, Westchester, Greenwich, and Stamford?
Where is my Persian rug actually cleaned?
How much does Persian rug cleaning cost?
Is my Persian rug insured while you're working on it?
How is a Persian rug actually cleaned?
Why hand-washed instead of machine-washed?
How long does Persian rug cleaning take?
Will my colors run during the wash?
Do you pick up Persian rugs across Manhattan, the Hamptons, Westchester, Greenwich, and Stamford?
Where is my Persian rug actually cleaned?
Can you repair moth damage on a Persian rug?
Can you do color restoration on a faded Persian?
Can you repair fringes and edges on a Persian?
How much does Persian rug cleaning cost?
Is my Persian rug insured while you're working on it?
More from Horizon.
Other ateliers, every service we offer, and the rest of our story — a few directions to explore.
Bring us your Persian rug.
Antique Tabriz, Kashan, Heriz, Isfahan, Bijar, Sarouk, Nain — whichever Persian tradition you own, we hand-wash with the process appropriate to its construction. Complimentary pickup from Manhattan, the Hamptons, Westchester County, Greenwich, and Stamford.
By hand · By the Cohen family · By appointment