The Polonaise collection from Jan Kath is a shining example of intercultural carpet making. As with most history of carpet making, it began in modern day Iran when the then ruler Shah Abbasi (1571-1629 ad) ordered the weavers of his royal court to make the most beautiful carpets in the world. The result was a series of delicately knotted designs made of silk, interwoven with gold and silver thread, shimmering enchanted forests of lotus flowers, convoluted arabesques and palmettes. On the one hand, vibrant and symmetrical, like looking through a kaleidoscope; on the other, enchanted and elegant.

The designs fascinated not only the Persian royalty, they also appealed to the Baroque taste of the Polish court. The Persian designs were joined by European motifs, and the carpets even showed the crests of the rulers. The most beautiful of these intercultural carpets inspired Jan Kath to create his Polonaise collection, Polonaise meaning Polish in French. He reconstructed the colors, most of which had faded, added his own motifs, and used the antique finishing process as well as typical Jan Kath signatures to add new highlights.