THE FIRST CARPET IN THE WORLD - 2300 YEAR OLD - PAZIRIK FORTRESS - WOVEN BY SCYTHIANS, A TURKIC TRIBE - 3rd cy BC - Before carpet–rug art, it will be more appropriate to think about the social conditions in which the sheep, which is the source of raw wool material of it, became an important factor. Because, there are strong relations between carpet-rug art and domestication of sheep and sheep farming and between interior decoration of tents and the felt necessary for the construction of the tent… According to historians, Afanasyevo culture, firstly emerged in a region with the same name in Altays. Horse had been firstly domesticated here, in this region. The people lived here are said to be the Hun Türkleri ( Khun Turkics ). “The animal raising Nomads needed easy movable tents for mobilization those can be also lifted by the animals. Those people did not know the European Style furniture. So the most important decorating items were the carpets. According to Uhlemann, the motherland of the carpets were the dry steps. This is also approved by the climatic properties. The most characteristic people of steps were the Turks. So it is natural that to see Turks as having great role in carpet weaving ( hand made) and of course distribution and trading… This is an idea on which many specialists agreed.” Sheep is an indispensable animal of the steps together with the horse. Horse, with its maneuver ability, provided right to live for Turks against Chinese armies for centuries. On the other hand sheep, with its wool, provided material for the items of wearing and accommodation. Turks made felt from the wools of sheep and embroidered the ram head on to their felts, hand woven carpets, and rugs that would keep them warm in the severe winter conditions of the steps. For example “….the carpets of Kyrgyz, ( Kırgız Halıları ) who lived in upper Yenisey and Mongolia for a period after Uygur Turkics ( Uygur Türkleri ) also made of felt. The domestic people call the motifs ( designs and patterns on the hand made Turkish Carpets ) as “Koçarding Müzü” , ’’ Koç Boynuzu ’’ (The Horn of the Rams) it is still possible to see Kazak Turks, in Kazakhstan, wearing shoes and boats made by felt, and in all Turkic Republics, ram-head decorated felts… A. Miller, one of Russian ethnographers, says in his treatise published in 1924, and named as “Carpet Products of the East”; They are the motifs of flower and plant in Persian textiles. The carpet motifs found at Caucasian Archaeological Sites during excavations completely same with other ornaments of 14th - 15th centuries of Turks. We cannot ignore this contribution of Turks to the Caucusian textile”. On the other hand author says that about the history of carpet weaving. Only the Turkic tribes were the weavers of hand made carpets and rugs and kilims. If it is necessary to count some of them: Turcoman; Karakalpak, Uzbek, Masaget and Kyrgyz. Especially for the Kyrgyz people, carpentery presents close relations between Nomadic Lifestyle and needs of this style of life… The core of the the Afanasyero Culture, shortly mentioned above, is a fortress near Bateney town. In this fortness; some remnants of sheep and horses found with some ornaments. As known, horse is an important sacrificial animal for Turks as it is a riding animal and gives them the opportunity to go faster and further. Old Turks were sacrificing horse for sky and ram for the earth. Still in Kazakhstan ( Kazakistan ) horse is being a sacrificed and it is more expensive than, sheep, cattle, and camel... The regions of inner Asia, in which Turks live, named as “Horse Raising Cultural Region”, and it is emphasized that the Turks first produced this culture. According to Manghin, one of the important researchers of this culture, Ural-Altaic people have two main faculties in world-history. These are firstly, the animal raising and secondly, the state-establishing faculties… The oldest known carpet in the world, found at Pazırık Fortness of Altay Region. Here is the oldest location, used by Turks since the oldest ages of history. But Russian archaeologist Rudonko, have insisted that the carpet he found is Scythian ( which is a Turkish tribe ) made. Some other Russian archaeologists and art historians, discussed in their articles whether the Pazirik carpet Iranian or Scythian. But they then have realised the motifs used in the Pazırık Carpet do have big similarity to Trukish carpet motifs … For instance, in one article the motherland of Scythians said to be Northern Black Sea Turkic Tribes , in another article Scythian traces in Siberia is talked about and at the other one it is said that “Scythians are like their relatives, Ural-Altayians” ( who were also Turkic Tribes ) decorates their graves. Also it has been written” there is a great relation between Central Asia (in other word, The Great Turkistan) and the Turks”. In the same issue Scythians are being narrated as Turkic Tribes”… they use arms on horses, specially sacrifice horses for gods, do not raise pigs, do drink Kimiz, ( milk from horse ) believe life after death and so put food and drinks to the grave and the hero people were buried after mummifying with their horses, they used ram-head bowls, lived in tents with wheels...” These are all Turkic Tribes’ common traditions and beliefs carried out even today from long time ago … It is very useful for the ones who will write about carpet-rugs, to begin with Pazirik carpet found in the world. As known, Pazirik plateau is near Balikli Göl (Fish Lake) and across Yan Ulagan River shore. There are stamp or leopard, and the figures of horse, saddle, cavalrymen with trousers on this first known carpet of the world which is found in one of the fortresses here. Leopard is the stamp of Almati, the former capital of Kazakhstan and the state stamp of Tartaristan. The trouser is named as “Şalvar” in Kazakhstan and in Turkey, which is an early form of trousers used by Turkic Tribes… The one who has a little bit information about medicine, knows that a saddle-like bone at the skull is named as ”Turkish Saddle” (Sella turcica). Consequently only one saddle and the wars of cavalry-men is enough to give sufficient clues about the relations of Pazırık carpet and Turkish culture. But it is possible to understand Scythians are not belonging to Arian race by considering their properties like kimiz ( horse milk ) drinking, not accommodating pig in their lands, horse sacrificing and ceremonies regarding death and grows. It is known that only Turks and Mongols drink kimiz and Western people had not known about it until 1944… And “according to Chinese chroniclers of III century B.C. the Khuns were living in Pazirik region. The Uygur Ondar (onlar) or Ondar Uygur tribe of Urenha Turks still exists at the east of Pazirik Tumulus. Shortly in the grave of excavation all the races which show the interment, rite, and cerements can be explained only by the custom, and traditions belonging to Turks. All the traces found in excavation, are the productions of the culture which Turks evolved in Central Asia and Altays before Christ… Turks still live in Kazakhstan, Tuva and Altays. It’s widely accepted by some historians concentrated on the Khuns, Chinese and, Mongol History that Altay region is accepted as the first motherland of Turks. While Vambray was talking about the travels he did to regions like Hive, Jahran and Bukhara, he narrated about the production of carpet and felt made by Turkmans and described embroidery work as; “a woman draws on sand part by part the embroidery samples she wants to be made and the workers weave the carpet by looking to these samples. The geography in which the art of carpet weaving was borned is the region in which Turks lived. The studies about carpets, which are near a hundred years old, shows that this art spread to whole world by Turks. The carpet which belongs to 6th century, and was found before Pazirik Carpet had been introduced by Seljuk Turks. The knotted carpet of Pazirik had been weaved by “Gördes knot” ( Gördes Düğümü ) which is also called by social scientists as “ Turkish Knot ”. This carpet weaving technique firstly used by Turkic Tribes in Inner Asia. So in some treatises it is declared that knotted carpets have very strong relations with Turkish History and Handcrafts . As art historians show, the “Iranian Knot” is asymmetric but Turkish Knot is symmetric. So it has to be evidence that the symmetrically knotted carpet is a Turkish Carpet … As known form Pazirik carpet or from the carpet rugs knotted in current Turkic Republics, the dominant elements on these carpets are the animal stamps. These animal stamps had been sourced from “Nomadic Culture and Lifestyle” field according to the specialist historians as the branch Manghin, Kopper, Grousset, Rasonyi. The lands of Hakas, Tuva, and Altay autonomous republics are the center of this Turkic Cultural environment... Russian scientists like L.P. Kyzlassov, K.F. Simirov, Kisselev and Griaznov objects Rudonko’s opinions and the opinions which suggests Pazirik carpet as Iranian carpet, K. Erdman, the Art Historian, was formerly having doubts if Pazirik carpet is Turkish or not; but then in his last treatise, he defended the opinion that Pazirik carpet is a Turkish carpet since it had been knotted by Gördes Knot which is definetely a Turkish Knot… According to Diyarbekirli, “Pazirik carpet is something like the mirror of the material values of the Hun Türkleri ( Khun Turkic Communities ) lived in Altays….” As it is explained above the dominant element of Iranian style is the stamp of plant. In Turkish style on the other hand the ram head and abstract stamps are dominant. The photos presented here had not been taken intentionally but all they had been taken randomly. The photos, we think, give important information regarding Pazirik carpet and the history of carpet weaving history. For example the dominant stamps of Pazirik carpets can be seen not only on carpet-rugs, but also on outer wall of a house, near “sickle-hammer” on banknotes, on a tombstone and even on ceilings or walls of toilets. Consequently the sameness of the stamps, seen on photos and taken in a wide geography from Altays to Van, Hakkari, ( in eastern Turkey ) to Adana, ( in southern Turkey ) Bergama, Çanakkale ( in western Turkey ) and Edirne ( in North western Turkey ) must have a meaning for thinkers. Most of them are not only similar but also identical... Plus , using the same stamps of people in such a big area, in their carpets tomb stones business and entertainment places, and even embroidered to Lenins statue must express something for thinkers…
Posted on: Sun, 15 Dec 2013 02:43:48 +0000
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