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Azerbaijan has been famous for its arts for centuries, with carpet production
traditionally playing a leading role among them. For the Azerbaijani people carpet-
weaving is an integral part of the local culture that encompasses the nation’s rich
spiritual world, deeply-rooted perceptions and aesthetic values. For millennia, the
Azerbaijanis were born and spent most of their lives on carpets. And on the carpets
did they pass away.
The origins of carpet-making tradition in Azerbaijan are traced to the period of Bronze
Age. Both written sources and archaeological finds clearly indicate that back in the II
millennium B.C., artifacts made of carpet fabric were already manufactured in the
territory of Azerbaijan. According to historic data and records by European travellers,
Mediaeval Azerbaijan was one of the major carpet hubs of the Orient.
In Azerbaijan, carpet weaving was primarily a women-dominated art, with the tradi-
tions and skills carefully passed over from one generation to another. It is widely
believed that in those good old days there was not a single woman in the area
incapable to weave a carpet. No surprise, a carpet set known as dast-khaly-gebe was
an integral part of each girl’s dowry. The set comprised 3-5 pieces of carpet works,
and the owner was supposed to be personally involved in the making process. This
centuries-old tradition was another factor encouraging the tradition of carpet weaving
in Azerbaijan and turning it into one of the major forms of popular art in the coun-
try.
By the mode of production, the Azerbaijani carpets are divided into piled and cut-
pile tytes. The latter ones include carpet works like
palas, jejim, shadda, kilim, zili,