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History |
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The art of carpet weaving
existed in Iran in ancient times, according to evidences
and in the opinion of scientists, the 500 B.C. Pazyric
carpet dating back to the Achaemenid period.
The first documented
evidence on the existence of Persian carpets came from
Chinese texts dating back to the Sassanid period (224 -
641 CE).
This art underwent many
changes in various eras of the Iranian history to an
extent that it passed an upward trend before the Islamic
era until the Mongols invasion of Iran. After the
invasion, the art began to grow again during the reign
of the Mongol dynasties of Timurid and Ilkhanid. |
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The Persian carpet is an essential
part of Persian art and culture. Carpet-weaving is
undoubtedly one of the most distinguished manifestations
of Persian culture and art, and dates back to the
Ancient Persia (c.3,500 BC)
Persian carpets can be
divided into three groups; Farsh / 'Qālii' (sized
anything greater than 6x4 feet), Qālicheh (meaning rug,
sized 6x4 feet and smaller), and nomadic carpets known
as Kilim, (including Zilu, meaning rough carpet). |
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With the passage of
time, the materials used in carpets, including wool,
silk and cotton, decay. Therefore archaeologists are
rarely able to make any particularly useful discoveries
during archaeological excavations. What has remained
from early times as evidence of carpet-weaving is
nothing more than a few pieces of worn-out carpets. Such
fragments do not help very much in recognizing the
carpet-weaving characteristics of pre-Seljuk period
(13th and 14th centuries AD) in Persia. |
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Pre-Islamic period |
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The Pazyryk Carpet, the
oldest surviving carpet in the world, 5th century BC.
In a unique archaeological
excavation in 1949, the exceptional Pazyryk carpet was
discovered among the ices of Pazyryk Valley, in Altai
Mountains in Siberia. The carpet was found in the grave
of a Scythian prince. Radiocarbon testing indicated that
the Pazyryk carpet was woven in the 5th century BC. This
carpet is 283 by 200 cm (approximately 9.3 by 6.5 ft)
and has 36 symmetrical knots per cm² (232 per inch²)..
The advanced weaving technique used in the Pazyryk
carpet indicates a long history of evolution and
experience in this art. Pazyryk carpet is considered as
the oldest carpet in the world. Its central field is a
deep red color and it has two wide borders, one
depicting deer and the other Persian horseman. |
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