This study examined the iconography of the  “vagirei” carpet pattern in the Rustam Khan Zand painting, which is an original visual document from the Zand period in Iran (1163–1209 AH  /  1751–1794 AD) as it is a court painting and signed by its painter. This allows studying all of the elements of the miniature in the light of the common patterns of its historical period. The main questions of this study were posed as follows: Could the patterns on the carpet be studied contextually? How could iconographic study lead to the analysis of the carpet pattern in the painting? It seems that in addition to discovering the analysis of one of the common carpet patterns of the Zand era, the iconography of its pattern can reveal the intellectual concepts and patterns of the Zand period. The hypothesis was that the painter of the miniature has painted everything that was in the surroundings realistically. However, on the presumption that Rustam Khan may have exerted his personal taste, the question arises whether selecting some of the visual elements such as the motifs in the patterns of the carpet and choosing arabesque vagirei pattern were rooted in the prince’s taste or to what degree they have been pictured in the painter’s mind? The painter of the work is Muhammad Sadiq and carpets with arabesque frame pattern can be found in his other works. The artistic virtuosity of the painter and the painting tradition of the time had more influence compared with the Zand prince’s exertion of personal taste. This qualitative study was descriptive-analytical and the data were collected by library research with indexing and recording observations. Moreover, the analysis was based on iconography theories. The results of the study showed that arabesque vagirei frame was one of the common carpet patterns in the Zand period in Iran given the subject of the miniature and Muhammad Sadiq’s signature. Despite the dominance of an exemplary atmosphere of Persian art in the painting, each one of the visual elements follows uniform practice and the tradition of Archaism can be perceived. The selection of this type of carpet was influenced by the content and is unified with the overall form of the miniature.The analyzes are also based on the iconographic theory of Ervin Panofsky. The carpet has two inner and outer edges. The inner edge consists of Islamic twist and the outer edge is one of the most common margins of Zand era carpet, the edge of the entrance. The search for the role of interventions in other works of the Zandieh period showed its widespread use. For example, in the brick decorations of Karim Khani citadel and limestone of Vakil bath, the role of intervention is also seen. Finally, recognizing Islamic contagions as one of the recurring flaws in Zandieh era rugs is important and indicates that contagious rugs, like other visual elements, have been the image of the prosperous designs of Zandieh era.
Despite the reputation of Iranian carpets, little scientific research has been done in the field of weaving and many questions remain unanswered. In some periods the problem becomes more complicated with the lack of historical sources. Zandieh carpet is an example of such a claim. The problem is so complicated that many years ago it was believed that there was no carpet from the Zandi period. The paintings solve the problem to some extent and the design of the carpets in the paintings as visual sources helps to recognize the acceptable and common designs of that period. Carpet designs and designs, despite repetition in each period of evolution, have had an innovative and unique style. The article seeks to answer the question of how the study of iconography, how to analyze the design of the carpet in the image? It seems that in addition to analyzing one of the common designs of Zandieh carpets, the iconography of the mentioned carpet design shows the concepts and thought patterns of Zandieh period. The hypothesis is that the painter depicted everything that actually existed around him in the painting in question; But on the other hand, assuming the possibility of applying Rostamkhan’s taste, the question arises that in choosing some visual elements such as carpet designs in the image and choosing the design of Islamic contagious designs arising from the prince’s taste or how much is imagined in the painter’s mind? The painter is Agha Sadegh II, and in his other works, carpets with Islamic frames can b