History of Turkish Rugs

Hand woven rugs can be found around the world and they are some of the most treasured and sought after of all home furnishings. The Middle East is famous for their beautiful Persian rugs and North America proudly displays the hand woven art of the Native Americans. Europe however, is not often thought of for its hand woven rugs; unless you begin to delve into the vast history and beauty of Turkish rugs.

Although there is no way to know exactly where and when the technique of weaving fibers into useful items began, there is little doubt that weaving in general began in Central Asia. As the inhabitants of the region began to migrate for various reasons, they were exposed to extreme weather conditions. Out of necessity they learned to utilize goat hair for making their shelters (tents). Goat hair tends to be longer and stiffer than that of sheep wool and they used a flatweave technique to make the material for their tents.

This worked out quite well for the nomads because as the hair was woven, smaller, stiffer hairs stuck out of the weave (much like shorter hairs will stick out of a braid). As these hairs became wet, they drooped a bit and covered the minute holes in the weave, making the tents nearly waterproof.

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As with any good idea, weaving evolved and was adapted to suit other needs of the nomadic tribes. Though the tents were fairly waterproof, they had no floor and moisture could seep up from the ground. They soon began to weave coverings for the earth floors of their tents to keep out this moisture and these were the very first Kilims.

As these nomads perfected the art of weaving, many more useful items were fashioned to enhance their everyday life. Saddle bags were made for horses and camels so that goods could be transported more easily and they also wove kilims that were used as warm blankets and as dividers to portion off areas of the tents into rooms. They were even used as cradles and the corners were tied to the tent poles so that they could be rocked back and forth.

After a time, they began to add pile to this basic flat weave and the first pile rugs came into existence. The first rugs of this type were very supple and would be folded and thrown over the backs of their horses as they traveled during the day and used for sleeping mats and blankets during the night.

They Come With A High Price

While Turkish rugs are very expensive in today’s market, that is often the price that you pay for such incredible quality and durability. A good, hand woven carpet will often last a lifetime and beyond. In fact, the world’s oldest surviving carpet is of Turkish design and was found in a tomb in Siberia. The carpet dates back to the 5th century B.C. and while this is an extreme example, it shows how long they can last if the conditions are right.

Keeping a carpet clean is essential to prolonging its life and whether you have an expensive, hand woven rug or a more modern carpet made by machines, it is best to let the professionals handle the carpet cleaning. Nottingham area residents can rely on Brenton Carpet Care to get the job done thoroughly and efficiently and also offer upholstery cleaning. Nottingham’s carpet care experts can keep your carpet and upholstery looking great and prevent the wear and tear that leads to replacement.