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Persian Carpet History
To look at a Persian carpet is to gaze into a world of artistic magnificence nurtured for more then 2,500 years. The Iranians were among the first carpet weaver of the ancient civilizations and, through centuries of creativity and ingenuity building upon the talents of the past, achieved a unique degree of excellence.
To Trace the history of the Persian carpet is to follow a path of cultural growth of one of the greatest civilizations the world has ever known. From being simply articles of need, as pure and simple floor entrance covering to protect the nomadic tribesmen from the cold and damp, the increasing beauty of the carpets found them new owners - kings and nobleman, those who looked for signs of wealth or adornment for fine buildings.
A Brief history
Carpets were probably first made by nomadic peoples to cover the earthen floor in their tents. It is not certain however, if the Egyptians, the Chinese, or even the Mayas first invented carpet making. It is quite possible that many peoples, none of whom were in contact with each other, began to make carpets at about the same time.
We can be certain however, that by the fifth century BC carpet making had reached a high artistic level. This was proven by the Russian archaeologists Rudenko and Griaznov, who in 1949 discovered the oldest known "knotted" carpet in the Pazyryk valley, about 5000 feet up on the Altai Mountains in Siberia.
