The Root of Wild Madder: Chasing the History, Mystery, and Lore of the Persian Carpet

I've been a carpet collector (primarily tribal piece) for well over 20 years; this book spoke to me as some carpets speak to me! I'm especially grateful for the quotes attributed to Hossein Payghambary of Nomad carpet shop in Isfahan. I rarely read a book more than once BUT this has drawn me to do so because of the rich text and the author's compassion for his subject. This is MUST read for anyone with a heart for carpets.

This is an absolutely fantastic book. It is not an academic text filled with facts associated with Persian carpets. Rather, it is the story of a man's quest for understanding how Persian culture is represented by the intricacies of their exquisite carpets. The reader travels with the author on his journey, meeting many people involved in the chain starting with the female weavers working their looms in their nomad tents to the merchants in the Oriental bazaars to the high-end retailer in NY City. For anyone who loves Persian carpets or is interested in attaining an insight into Persian culture, this book is a must read.

By experiencing Brian Murphy's trip through Afghanistan and Iran and his search for answers to a number of questions he had and developed about the carpets and the people involved in making and selling them, I learned a great deal. I had no idea what I would learn would be so extensive and interesting. It was one of those books that I didn't want to end. Since the chances of my visiting there are slim, I really am thankful to have seen and experienced the people and culture through Murphy's eyes. His love of the rugs and the people are obvious to the reader, and he clearly wants to share what he knows and has experienced with others. I highly recommend reading this book.

Brian Murphy has given us a reverential yet factual account of his journey through the tradition, construction, and marketing of Oriental rugs. His descriptions of the Afgan countryside are heartbreaking, but the converstions with those in the business of dyeing, weaving, and selling rugs are as affecting as they are informative. An old Turkmen saying conveys the essence of their rug tradition: "Carpets are our soul." Or, as a young woman says as she completes knotting a section of the rug she is working on, "It is like a small world all alone and separate: perfect and peaceful." Murphy explores the debates on authenticity: spontaneous folk art versus commercial product; synthetic dyes versus the natural dyes of the book's title. He does not shrink from showing us the enormous contrasts between the harsh life of the area and the poetic beauty of their rugs. In the end it is clear that he is an unabashed lover of Oriental rugs....and that's not a bad thing. Highly recommended.

Nothing quite so enhances a space as an Oriental carpet, however humble or elegant. Carpets may enliven the spirit and mind as well, and here is the enduring significance of their art, never ending. After reading Brian Murphy's journey among them, newly begun, we join him in our own unending adventures. There is a spirit to this book reaching out to both the novice and the collector. One also learns a lot about Iran and Afghanistan, their culture and history past and present. This book is an essence of Persia. Murphy was himself a novitiate as he takes us with him to meet carpet merchants, weavers, and dyers, urban and rural. He communicates a searching, often wide-eyed, innocence while meeting with myriad folk. He handles this contrast appealingly, rather as if we were with him, a style greatly effectuating what he wants to tell us. I and our carpets together, will never be the same. This volume is also a welcome relief from the plainness of so many modern publications. The type styles, the look and feel of the paper, and the designs of the jacket, covers, and end papers are an aesthetic delight and most appropriate to the story.