Hereke is a small town on the Sea of Marmara, east of Istanbul, that became the most prestigious rug-weaving center in Turkey when Sultan Abdulmecid I established the Ottoman Imperial Manufactory there in 1843. The manufactory was created to weave rugs and textiles for the Ottoman court — for the Dolmabahçe Palace and other imperial residences — and the standards were extraordinarily high.
Hereke rugs are notable for:
- Pure silk pile on a silk foundation in the highest grades, with extremely high knot density (often 1,000–3,000 KPSI, with exceptional examples reaching even higher)
- Wool-on-cotton production in larger and more accessibly-priced grades
- Hereke's signature designs — adaptations of classical Persian patterns (medallions, gardens, hunting scenes, tree of life), often executed with Ottoman refinement
- Curvilinear floral execution that competes with the finest Persian Tabriz and Isfahan workshops
- Symmetric (Turkish) knot in most production, though asymmetric knots are also used in fine grades
After the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century, Hereke production declined significantly, then was revived in the 1950s with renewed focus on silk rugs. The town has remained the highest-end source of Turkish rugs ever since.
In the global rug market, Hereke silk rugs sit at the very top of contemporary production alongside the finest Persian Qum and Isfahan silks. Authentic Hereke rugs are sometimes signed in the pile and command premium prices.