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ORIENTAL RUG ZINE
LESSON ONE
Where are rugs made?
Oriental rugs are made as far west as Morocco and as far east as
eastern China; as far north as Mongolia and as far south as India.Committing that formula to memory will mean little to you, though, until you have completed your first assignment; and that is to learn to draw a rough map of
the entire rug-weaving world - from memory, of course. I emphasize that the map may be very rough. At this stage, I am most interested in your having a good picture in your mind's eye of the cartographic relationships between
rug-weaving countries.
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Click for another map
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For instance, if you understand where eastern Turkey, the Caucasus and northern Iran lie in relation to each other you will be prepared to understand
important aspects of the rugs from those regions. Learn to draw a rough map and then ask yourself, for instance, what countries border Afghanistan.
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In memorizing your map, it may help to notice the countries that border China in the west. All but India and Nepal are "istan" countries. From
the north to south, they are Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The Caspian and Black Seas are good points of reference too. Three countries lie between them (Armenia,Azerbaijan and Georgia). Two border the Caspian on
the east coast (Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan). Iran lies south of the Caspian. Turkey lies south of the Black Sea.
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When you are able to draft a map as I have specified, you will be able to do
something that most rug professionals cannot do. Congratulations in advance. When you feel comfortable with your map-making, please go to "Quiz for Lesson One" below and test yourself. You will find answers on a subsequent
page. Have fun.
FOCUS
Why has rug-making grown up and persisted here in this area? Is there something about the geography and climate that promotes rug weaving?
Plentiful grassland pastures in both mountains and flatlands support the domestication of sheep, and of course sheep's wool is the basic raw material of most rugs. Natural dyestuffs are plentiful too, some cultivated, others
harvested wild. All the raw materials of rug making were in place thousands of years ago.
Just as the climate and geography of the area have promoted a sheep based
economy called pastoral nomadism, they also have promoted agriculture. Agriculture may be as important to rug weaving as pastoral nomadism. Agriculture in much of the rug-weaving area supplies some of the basic raw
material of rugs such as cotton, the foundation material of most oriental rugs. Furthermore, agriculture is responsible for the establishment of villages and cities, and some scholars believe pastoral nomadism would not have been
possible except for the technological support associated with towns and cities. Supplies and technology from the towns, they say, is what made pastoral nomadism possible.
So the answer is yes, the geography and climate of the rug weaving area provided conditions necessary for generating the raw materials of oriental rugs and for the establishment of towns and cities that in turn helped develop
rug-weaving techniques.It has been said that, because of climate, north of Mongolia rugs are made from animal skins and south of India they are made from plant material.
One disturbing note is that overgrazing of sheep has resulted in the loss of vast ancient grasslands, now become deserts. A very significant amount of wool
already must be imported from Australia and New Zealand for rug-weaving, and as the popularity of oriental rugs waxes at the beginning of the 21st century, rug manufacturers are very concerned about a serious shortage of
wool. In the past, wool shortages have spelled serious trouble for the carpet industry and have sometimes resulted in the best rugs becoming very expensive and the others declining in quality.
QUIZ FOR LESSON ONE
1.Oriental rug weaving takes place on what three continents?
2.The rugs from eastern Turkey, north-western Iran and the southern
Caucasus are in many respects similar in appearance and construction. Based on the map, can you think of a reason why?
3.What rug-making countries surround Iran?
4.Turkmen weavers are found today in Turkmenistan, Northern Afghanistan, north-east Iran and in parts of Turkey. Can you think of why?
5.For extra credit calculate how much a rug would be worth today if it was
worth $1 in 1000 AD and it doubled in price every two years. (You will have to have read the introduction to Oriental Rugs 101 to understand why I ask this question.)
Oriental Rug Zine is brought to you by Emmett Eiland's Oriental Rugs, a trusted San Francisco bay area oriental rug and oriental carpet dealer since 1969. |
