The Turkish tribes invented hard-wearing and double-knotted carpets. The techniques used in handmade carpets were brought to the Mediterranean coast by the Seljuks in the 12th century. The demand for carpets in different periods dictated the pace of the development of carpet weaving, but high quality handmade carpets have always found a ready market.
The oldest carpet known was discovered, frozen in ice, by Russian archaeologists in 1984, and it is called the ”Pazirik” carpet. This carpet, which measures 1.80 rn by 2 rn., is dated somewhere around 4th centuries B.C.and is on exhibit in the Hermitage in St.Petersburg (Leningrad). The ”Pazirik” carpet is tightly knotted and therefore indicates that the art of carpet weaving had emerged long before its production.
Early Ottoman carpets were developed even further, and exported to Europe as well as to Eastern countries and Egypt as important items of commerce during that time period. Carpets were also presented as diplomatic gifts. During the 16th century, the Ottoman Empire began to live its golden age as it expanded its territories and strengthened its central administrative government. Ottoman sultans commissioned large carpets for the mosques that they had built. Animal figures and geometric designs, which were important elements in carpets up to that time, were enriched with more graceful and sophisticated outlines and designs such as plant, chintamani, and cloud motifs, and a transition was made to large medallion or star Uşak carpets. Starting with the 17th century, the Ottoman Empire’s political situation began to deteriorate and it had an adverse impact on its economy, which continued its increasingly steep downward spiral in the 18th and 19th centuries. In addition, Westernization movements were felt in every field from industry to culture and art. The Feshane Palace Factory was founded in Kumkapı, Kadrıga in Istanbul under the name of Dârüssınâa. It was expanded in 1833-1839, and moved to Defterdar in the vicinity of Eyüp. Carpet production in Feshane started after 1843, and continued until 1914. Since Feshane mostly manufactured for the palace, its products can be found in the Zülveçeyn Hall of the Dolmabahçe Palace, the Yıldız Chalet Mansion and the Beylerbeyi Palace.
The motifs and colours of Turkish carpets and kilims constituted an important medium of expression for the weaver and his community. The values of the period to which it belonged may be reflected in the twist and quality of the wool, the manner in which the dye was manufactured and from what plants or insects it was produced, the fineness or looseness of the stitch and, most importantly, the symbolic significance of the motifs and the aesthetic dimensions of the stylization.
Apart from the dyeing and weaving, which form the technical basis of the knotted carpet, the most important feature from the point of view of the cultural heritage involved is the nature of the motifs employed. The Turkish craftsman possessed the ability to imbue his hand-woven fabrics with his own identity, his social position and communal traditions. The marks stamped on the tents and horse-covers in the high-lands and summer pastures which are also to be found incorporated in their fabrics, have survived in their fabrics, have survived in the form of aesthetic variations the first inventors could never have foreseen. That is what distinguishes the Turkish carpet so very clearly from all other carpets in the world.
All Turkish carpets, from those of Eastern Turkestan to those produced in Baluchistan, Khorasan, the Caucasus and Anatolia, are characterized by the distinctive designs that raise traditional handicrafts to the highest artistic level.