Rug weaving is a tradition that spans over
centuries and over a number of cultures. There are several
references to the art of weaving found in ancient scriptures
and classical writing. Historical records show that the
court of Cyrus the Great, who founded the Persian monarchy
over 2,500 years ago, was adorned by magnificent carpets.
Classical tales recount how Alexander the Great found
a carpet of a very fine fabric in Cyrus’ tomb.
The earliest known ‘knotted’ rug (pictured) was discovered
in the Pazyryk valley by Russian archaeologists Rudenko
and Griaznov in 1949 during excavations of burial mounds
in the Altai Mountains in Siberia. The 2500 year old ‘Pazyryk
rug’ had been preserved purely by chance in the frozen
tombs of Scythian chiefs.
We can never be sure where rug weaving originated because
the wool, cotton and silk used in making rugs are perishable
so very few of the earliest carpets are still in existence.
What we do know is that even if Mongolians had been the
first to weave pile rugs, it was the Persians that took
the craft and made it into an art form. By the 6th century
Persian carpets had won international prestige and were
being exported to distant lands.
To trace the history of the Persian carpet is to follow
a path of cultural growth of one of the greatest civilizations
the world has ever seen. The epicenter of the craft of
rug making is traditionally Persian and the history of
the craft is linked to the history of Persia. The Iranians
were among the pioneer rug weavers of the ancient civilizations,
having achieved an exceptional degree of perfection through
centuries of creativity and ingenuity. The skill of rug
weaving has been handed down by fathers to their sons,
who built upon those skills and in turn handed them down
to their offspring as a closely guarded family secret.
Iran is the genesis of most motifs, patterns and traditional
colorations produced in rugs throughout the world today.
Over the centuries, Persian rugs have become treasured
heirlooms passed on from one generation to the next.
Persian rugs have always been and still are an intrinsic
part of Iranian culture and its people's daily lives.
Rugs are in many cases the most valued possessions, and
they are an integral part of an Iranian home. Thus, it
is not surprising that current production levels throughout
Iran equal those reached prior to the Islamic Revolution
of 1979. In fact, rugs are now even produced in areas
where weaving was previously not practiced.
