6
varni, sumakh
and
lady
.
Since times immemorial, types of cut-pile works widely used
in local domestic life were
khurjun
(
weathercock),
mafrashi
(
carpet-type chest),
chul
(
horse cloth), etc. A far as the most popular piled carpets are concerned, these were
dast-khaly-gebe
,
khalcha
,
khaly
and
gebe
.
Abundant nature and diverse environment together with a set of historic, economic
and social factors nurtured an enormous versatility of the Azerbaijani carpets. Each
region of Azerbaijan was known for the signature carpets and carpet works typical for
that particular area. The major carpet schools of Azerbaijan took centuries to
consolidate, and were known after each respective area, such as Guba, Shirvan, Baku,
Ganja, Gazakh, Garabagh, Nakhchivan and Tabriz.
With their rich compositions and elaborate designs, the Azerbaijani carpets were
widely popular in the Mediaeval Europe. The German and British envoys of the XVI-
XVIII centuries were raving about artistic value of local carpets, whereas the famous
European artists of the XIV-XV centuries tended to portray them on their canvasses.
For instance, the Azerbaijani carpet of “Mughan” design (the Garabagh school) adorns
‘
Madonna Enthroned’ by Hans Memling (1433-1494). Pattern of the Gazakh school
may be found on Carlo Crivelli’s “The Annunciation with Saint Emidius” (1430-1495),
whereas Zeyva carpet (the Guba school) stands out at “Madonna with Canon Van der
Paele” by Jan van Eyck (1395 - 1441).
The best samples of Azerbaijani carpets are currently exhibited at the world’s leading
museums and galleries, such as the Metropolitan (New York), the Textile Museum
(
Washington DC), the Louvre (Paris), the Victoria & Albert Museum (London), the
Museum of Turkic and Islamic Works, the Topkapy Museum (Istanbul), the Museum
of Oriental Art, the History Museum and the Armory Museum (Moscow) and the Arts
Museum (Kiev).
Mughan
type carpet (the XIII century, Garabagh school), one of the earliest samples
of the carpet art, is nowadays exposed in the Museum of Turkic and Islamic Works
in Istanbul, whereas ‘Dragon & Phoenix’ composition (the Gazakh school) manufac-