A historical tour around carpets from its inception until now

Tribes have practiced carpet making for centuries, using long grasses and herbs to weave the oldest types of primitive carpets, to protect them from the cold during the cold months. Bedouin tribes have used animal skins to make carpets for more than 5,000 years. Thanks to the strenuous efforts of archaeologists, it has been revealed that carpets were popular more than 4,000 years ago, i.e. during the Egyptian and Mesopotamian eras.

When were carpets invented?

In 1949, one of the oldest carpets in the world was discovered in Siberia, which was named after the Pazyryk carpet , which dates back to 500 BC, and despite the age of the carpet, it still retained its complex and sophisticated designs, fibers, and wonderful and beautiful colors, and a question was raised about the origin of the carpet. Some were saying that the carpets originated from Iran and Turkey, but the most accurate answer is that the carpets originated from Armenia in the seventh century BC or earlier.

So, the history of carpets is as old as humans, so humans have always searched for comfort and a comfortable atmosphere, regardless of whether they live in caves or in palaces, so cavemen created carpets from animal furs to cover themselves from the cold, and to provide comfort, and because of continuous development, they are no longer There is a need for this in the present, but humans continued to use traditional carpets in homes, and carpets were a source of income for humans as well by selling them in different regions of the world, and the materials from which carpets are made have evolved over time, from animal skins to industrial materials.

The following is a brief overview of the history of carpets, how they appeared, how they were produced, how they were designed, and how they were formulated.

carpet symbols

Many carpet symbols and motifs dating back to centuries ago appeared, which are still used to this day, and those symbols carried many meanings, for example, symbols in the shape of a crescent, in the shape of a palm, a box, a pointed star, and other symbols were used in oriental carpets. The bowl of water is also found in Persian and oriental carpets, and the symbols of Persian carpets have an attractive appearance and have a long historical connection.

History of Persian Carpets

Persian carpets are of great historical value in Iran and the world, and they have always been a benchmark for weaving skill, and their prices are among the highest in the world among handmade carpets, and they are generally rare.

The historical value of Persian carpets lies in the fact that it has been passed on from generation to generation throughout the history of the Persians, which extends back 2,500 years. The patterns of Persian carpets depict the rich history of Persia. These carpets are woven by hand, and require great experience and skill.

History of Zapotec Rugs

The Zapotecs are a people indigenous to Mexico, living in the southern state of Oaxaca, one of the first villages to create Zapotec rugs around 1465 The background to this stunning rug begins in Teotitlán del Valle, a picturesque town with a long history, about 20 miles from Central Oaxaca.

History of Aubusson carpets

Aubusson carpets are one of the best carpets in the world. They originated in France in the fifteenth century. They are machine-woven from wool. They are inexpensive, but they are distinguished by their consistency and longevity. They are made today with cheaper synthetic materials while maintaining the same quality.

History of Egyptian Carpets

Egyptian carpets and craftsmen were famous for their wide and varied works. Skilled craftsmen produced carpets from animal skins that the Egyptian pharaohs wore, and the colors of Egyptian carpets varied, from blue, red, and gold to black and purple, according to the desire of the pharaoh or the king. The “niche” was one of the most famous types of carpets. The Egyptian carpet, which is square in shape and dark green in color, is also called the "green net", and dates back to about thirty-two thousand years.

Seventeenth Century Carpets (History of Oriental Carpets)

Oriental carpets in the seventeenth century were woven from wool, then silk was used to weave prayer rugs, and the weavers at that time did not have an accurate idea of ​​​​weaving techniques, then they used camel and goat hair, then they started using different materials to end up using herbs and other plant materials to weave carpets .

19th century carpets

Rugs were woven in the United States for the first time in 1971, but the most popular rugs in the West were designed using flat weaves until the 19th century, because they were not expensive and could be afforded, as handwoven oriental rugs were very expensive, and demand continued The oriental rugs are on the rise to the nineteenth century, since they were suited to the Italian and European furniture styles of the time.

The magnificent Persian carpets, with their bright and rich colors, began to spread in the early nineteenth century, and found their way to the European market hungry for fine furnishings, and these wonderful carpets are woven with the skill of the greatest artists of the era and until now.

20th century carpets

At the beginning of the twentieth century, oriental carpets were excluded from modern decorative styles, to be replaced by machine-made carpets that were characterized by single colors with mostly simple general patterns, so that the decor became somewhat more comfortable, with available colors instead of carpets with bold and complex colors and patterns.

Deep purple and beige were considered to be the most popular colors of the 20th century, because they blended with all color schemes, and by the 1950s, rugs were designed using sewing machines, and that trend became more popular compared to hand-knitting techniques.

21st Century Rugs

Carpets spread more in the twenty-first century, and became essential with the use of solid wood floors, and became available in different types, sizes and styles, to meet the tastes and needs of consumers, and the use of carpets as a fabric for hanging on the wall and as curtains became popular. One of the advantages of carpet is that it helps unify the design of any space, regardless of the style of this space, from traditional to contemporary. Carpets are available in different shapes of rectangle and circular.

History of Egyptian Carpets

The history of Egyptian carpets began since the fifteenth century, and there was no reliable evidence about the history of the carpet industry other than some parts of textiles that date back thousands of years (the first carpet dates back to 3000 BC), and after the invasion of the Ottoman carpets, Egyptian carpets gained a place and importance in Around the world, weaving methods evolved and designs and patterns became more complex and elaborate.

Pazyryk carpets

The Pazyryk carpet is the oldest carpet in the world. It was found in burials in Siberia dating back to 4000 BC. It is characterized by a woven pile. With the approach of the twelfth century AD, carpet weaving was noticed in India for the first time, and since then it began to spread throughout the east, between the years 1100 to 1200 Some activists traveled through the Middle East and helped introduce oriental rugs in Europe.

European era rugs

The hand-knotted carpet industry began to spread at the beginning of the thirteenth century, thanks to the entry of many people known for this skill into France, and the production of Persian carpets flourished during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, and reached its zenith during the reign of Shah Abbas in the sixteenth century.

Isfahan

Isfahan was distinguished for producing complex patterns of carpets with its wonderful color combinations and deep textures. Isfahan was known as the hub and center of the carpet industry in Persia. Persian carpets are distinguished by their high quality, as they contain approximately 1000 knots per square inch. Persian and Turkish carpets were exported to Western countries during the fifteenth century, then the English began to manufacture carpets in the fifteenth century during the reign of King Henry, and some Persian weavers traveled from their countries to Paris and began working in weaving weaving in the Paris palace in the seventeenth century.

In 1628, the first carpet factory was established in France, and it began producing high-quality carpets with beautiful, vibrant colors based on a background with a clear oriental touch, and in 1700 England became a center for the production of carpets and rugs, and the English developed strong looms in 1780.

Embroidered carpets were produced in France first, and French Aubusson carpets became a famous brand as the finest carpets, while Brussels became an important place for the manufacture of such carpets in the sixteenth century, and by the eighteenth century it had become the central place for the carpet industry.

Textile revolution

With the advancement of technology, carpets appeared with sophisticated hand-weaving practices, and knotted carpets were the most well-known types in North America, in addition to other types of carpets made with clothing scraps. The first carpet-making factory was established in 1791 in Philadelphia, in the United States. On the other hand, it received French weavers trained with time, and produced jacquard rugs in the 19th century.

Modern carpets

Carpets were designed and sewn in this era using machines, since it is less expensive than manual carpet weaving, which takes an important place culturally and artistically, and if you want to redesign your decor, one of the best options is to add timeless elegance with carpets, as a variety of carpets are available Styles with a wide range of colors and textures that will complement any home decor.

questions and answers

When were carpets invented?

The first carpet made of sheep’s wool and goat’s hair appeared two or three thousand years BC. The Middle East could be the country of origin. However, the original habitat is still a matter of debate. The oldest is called the "Pazyryk carpet" which was discovered in 1945 and measures 6 feet 6 inches by 6 feet.

When was the carpet sweeper invented?

American Melville Bissell invented the carpet sweeper in 1876. Before that, carpet cleaning workers were manually removing dirt and dust using simple brooms, which made the task difficult. After the carpet sweeper was invented, carpet cleaning became easier, and now, the carpet sweeper has been replaced by an electronic vacuum cleaner.

When did carpets become popular in homes?

The use of rugs became popular in homes in the 19th century, after they gained popularity during the post-war suburban building boom.

In this article, we tried to provide an overview of the history of carpets from ancient times to the modern era. We covered different eras such as seventeenth century carpets, Egyptian carpets, the European era, and nineteenth century carpets, and we provided details about the symbols of Persian and Oriental carpet weavers.

Carpets originated in 500 BC and are still used in homes and hotels. We can say that the history of carpets goes back to the Middle Ages when they were used as a common floor covering in the time period known as the Renaissance.

Translated by: ruggallery.net