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Interesting facts on handmade carpets.

Did you know that the first carpets or floor coverings ever made are thought to have been produced as early as 7000 BC? The world’s oldest surviving carpet, the Pazyryk carpet, is over 2000 years old. The carpet was discovered in 1947 in a Scythian tomb in Siberia.
Here are some more fascinating facts on handmade carpets.

– The world’s largest handmade carpet is the Qasr al-Alam carpet from Iran. This carpet is larger than a football pitch in size.-  The most expensive carpet ever sold in the world was sold at an auction in 2013 for 33.8 million dollars.

– Camel hair was commonly used in handmade carpets in the past. This is less the case nowadays, and probably just as well seeing as camel hair gives off a rather unpleasant smell in warm and moist temperatures.

–  The use of red colour in Persian and Oriental carpets symbolises courage and beauty.

–  In Persian handknotted carpets the tree of life represents eternal life and this detailed pattern has both Buddhist and Muslim symbols, that are also greatly influenced by European and Nordic mythology.

–  Cork wool is the name given to the wool that is trimmed/cut from the neck of the sheep. This wool contains a higher level of fat and is used in finer handknotted carpets, making them soft and shiny.

–  The first carpets were brought to Europe by Alexander the Great during the 3rd century BC, when he came back from battles in Persia.-  The majority of Oriental and Persian carpets derive their names from the place of origin or the nomadic group. (For example, Keshan, Ghashghai, Isfahan, Mashad)


For more indepth information on handknotted carpets please refer to our Carpet Encyclopedia.

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Image shows the world’s oldest surviving carpet, the Pazyryk carpet.

SOURCE:   https://www.carpetvista.com/blog/32/interesting-facts-on-handmade-carpets

HISTORY OF CARPET

AFGHAN CARPET

“Pazyryk carpet”, which dates from the 5th-4th century BC.

The knotted pile carpet probably originated in the 3rd or 2nd millennium BC in West Asia, perhaps the Caspian Sea area or the Armenian Highland, although there is evidence of goats and sheep being sheared for wool and hair which was spun and woven as far back at the 7th millennium.

The earliest surviving pile carpet is the “Pazyryk carpet”, which dates from the 5th-4th century BC. It was excavated by Sergie Ivanovich Rudenko in 1949 from a Pazyryk burial mound in the Altai Mountains in Siberia. This richly colored carpet is 200 x 183 cm (6’6″ x 6’0″) and framed by a border of griffins. Many experts in oriental carpets hypothesize that it is of Urartian workmanship.

MANUFACTURING PROCESS

Process…

Part of the rug-making process by Persians is the superior dying process and materials used to make hand knotted Persian rugs. Before being made into rugs, the yarn is washed several times, and, upon completion of the carpet, that same multiple-washing technique is employed.

This is done to secure the color and to keep it from running. While it is unlikely a Persian rug will fade much, if at all, one will notice that their rugs will age gracefully. The term “abrash” is used to suggest the slightly uneven hues characteristic of natural dyes.

The term itself is an Arabic word for dappled, and it is caused by factors including slight differences in how wool batches and dyes interact. Much time and care is taken to make colors meld together nicely. The mellowing of color is a much sought-after quality of antique carpets. One will not see fading in a Persian rug like they will in rugs of inferior quality.

source:   http://www.afghancarpet.com/history-of-carpet/

Categories: Afghanistan, Asia, Iran, The Muslim Times

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3 replies ›

  1. When I worked for the Afghan-Swiss Trading Co.Ltd. – https://themuslimtimes.info/2017/08/19/glimpses-into-the-life-of-a-global-nomad-part-four/ – I noticed that practically all Afghan carpets manufactured at the time used colors from CIBA LTD. BASLE (now in Novartis I assume).(our company imported the CIBA colors) Of all Afghan carpets that I purchased and brought with me to Switzerland only one or two have ‘original’ (none CIBA) colors. (ASTCO Ltd. at the time was the largest exporter of Afghan carpets and together with a sister-company in Iran our principals were the largest wholesalers of carpets in Europe).

    Reply

    • Woow Rafiq-/ not so many Muslim has chance to travel around the world— you saw many old tradition every each countries— which coutry is the most you impressed you?
      beside your own country Swizeland? God bless you Rafiq

      When I was young I traveled many countries too—I enjoyed so much to travel.

      With my love ❤️

      Reply

      • A difficult question, as each country has advantages and disadvantages. The weather in Great Britain is lousy, but for members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at it is a very nice country, because the Khalifa of this time resides there. Switzerland? Yea, it is nice when the sun shines, but then a cup of coffee costs anything from 5 – 7 US dollars. (When I was young one US dollar was 4.30 Swiss Francs, now it is 0.95 Swiss Francs. Consequently when I was young one coffee might have cost 0.50 US dollars and now 10 times that much). Some one planning to travel to Switzerland recently asked about parking fees (as they intended to rent a car). I answered ‘Switzerland is a country for those not needing to ask how much the parking fees are. Mauritius is nice. Weather is good and beaches are nice. And Ahmadiyya Muslim Mosques are there for our Friday prayers. … Yes, each country had its advantages and disadvantages. Please google : Glimpses into the life of a global nomad (part 1 to 10).

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