BAKU
The Baku Carpet Weaving School includes villages of the
Absheron Peninsula – Novkhani, Nardaran, Bulbula, Fatmayi, Mardakan,
Gala, Khila and others, as well as the Khyzy area with Gedi, Hil, Kesh,
Findigan and other carpet producing centers outside of Absheron.
Most of these carpets were called after villages where they were woven
in: “Khila-buta”, “Khila-Afshan”, “Novkhani”, “Surakhani”, “Gala”,
“
Baku”, “Goradil”, “Fatmayi”, “Findigan”, “Gaadi”, etc. Generally
similar to the Guba and Shirvan carpets by technical qualities, the carpets
produced in Baku were distinguished with own artistic characteristics.
The field of the carpets is mainly dark blue and rarely red and yellow.
These carpets stand out with their softness, bright colors, originality
of decorative elements and fineness of patterns. Geometric medallions
and curvilinear plant motives dominate in patterns of the carpets. For
example, repeated patterns in the “Khila-Afshan” carpet demonstrated
in the catalogue form spiral branches on which a number of elements
are placed. These elements are used as filling, additional, or principal
motives. The meaning of the word “Afshan” is “to spread”, “scatter”,
“
motley”. The “Afshan” design is used not only in the Baku, Guba, and
Shirvan carpets, but also in the Tabriz ones. The catalogue demonstrates
an example of the “Khila-buta” carpets. The name comes from the village
of Khila in the eastern part of Baku (now, Amirjan) where they were
woven. The carpet shows “buta”, the most popular and rich almond-
shaped motive in Azerbaijan ornamental art. In the past, the motive bore
a symbolic meaning and was used by the fire-worshippers as a decorative
element. In the Baku region, pile-less carpets (palas, kilim, and zili) and
carpet items (kheiba, chanta, khurjun) were also woven.