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Turkmen Carpets |
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When one first thinks
of Turkmenistan, it is the arid land and oil and gas wells that first
come to mind. However, when it comes to art and culture, carpet making
is by far the most predominant image. For a Turkmen, carpet making
has the same importance as the pyramids do for Egypt. It is one of
the oldest arts in Turkmenistan and the region. Archeological data places carpet making on the territory of Turkmenistan as early as the 6th century B.C. The remains of a carpet which archeologists found in the 1940's at Altai is two-thousand five hundred years old. Research shows that the design is very similar to the carpets of today.
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It took centuries for these designs to develop, and the decoration of the carpets is extremely original, reflecting stylized articles of the real world surrounding nomadic livestock-breeders. Ornaments are geometric, and love of deep, rich red is an artistic tradition of the carpets.
The art of carpet weaving was passed from generation to generation and today one can single out several types of Turkmen carpets, each having individual ornamentation. The five traditional designs form part of the country's state emblem and flag. For Turkmen nomads, the carpets were extremly important, covering wagon floors and forming collapsible walls, protecting them from the cold.
Turkmen carpets have centuries-old history. They are mentioned in Zoroastrian Avesta, in works of Homer and Gerodot, in ancient Sanskrit epics Ramayana and Mahabharata, in Shahnameh by Firdousi, in One thousand and one nights, and other ancient and medieval writings. Italian traveler Marco Polo referred to Turkmen carpets as the most thin and beautiful. Turkmen carpets have been also represented in pictures of the Italian Renaissance artists.
In 2001, Turkmen carpet masters have weaven a giant carpet, with the area of 301 sq. m and weight of 1,200 kg. It is recorded in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest handmade carpet in the world.
Today, carpet making has become a professional art. Like the Turkmen ancestors, natural dyes and Sargin sheep wool (the smoothest to the touch) are still used. The 15 carpet-making factories employ about 10,000 people and put out 41,000 square meters of carpets a year. |
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