Worlds Oldest Carpet

If you ever stop to wonder where carpet originally began, it would be very hard to determine. There are several different archeological findings that prove to us that the art of weaving and tying to create a rug is something that has been around for thousands of years. During a search back in the mid 1940's, an archeologist named S. J. Rudenko discovered a rug in a burial tomb that had belonged to someone very famous. Until then, people speculated that rugs existed but the only evidence was found in sections or pieces of a rug but never a complete rug but now this proof that rugs existed long before can be seen by all those who are interested.

When the prince of Altai died, he was buried in a grave mound with several pricey possessions, one of which was the Pazyryk Carpet. All of this took place in the Pazyryk Valley, located in the Altai Mountains of Southern Siberia. This dates back to the 5^th Century. Unfortunately the grave mound was robbed of the pricey possessions, all but the Pazyryk Carpet. When the robbers dug down into the mound to obtain the possessions they didn't bother to cover the opening they made back up. Eventually the weather would find its way into the hole and start to fill up the hole. When temperatures dropped and the water inside the tomb would freeze the ice would actually preserve the Pazyryk Carpet. The rug was discovered some 2500 years later.

What did the archeologists discover about the Pazyryk Carpet? They discovered that the rug was 6 feet by 6 inches and 6 feet by 0 inches. It was also discovered that the creator of this rug used 240 knots per square inch. They also discovered that the weaver who created the Pazyryk Carpet was very experienced in his or her duties to weave the rug. The proof was in the design, the way the dyes were added and the over all creation of the rug. It had to be done by someone who knew what they were doing. It was able to hold its shape and color for all those years.

Today, the Pazyryk Carpet is being exhibited in The Hermitage Museum located in Petersburg Russia where people can view the famous rug as well as other rugs that have been discovered over the years.

The Pazyryk Carpet can tell quite a story when you view it for the first time. You can see the fine details that were given to this rug. Maybe it was made for the purpose of burial or maybe the prince had it in his living quarters. It was made by hand and is still well preserved after all these years.

The Pazyryk Carpet is often referred to as the oldest carpet still around. The actual picture of the Pazyryk Carpet can be seen online as well as in the actual museum in which it is displayed. Over the years, the details as seen in this type of rug has been copied but never perfected like the Pazyryk Carpet.