As for the design, the rows of center elements are identical to bas-relief tiles found in the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh. The horses represented are nearly identical to alternating horsemen and grooms seen in a frieze at Persepolis, the Persian capital city of the time. The griffins, in the inner and outermost borders, are also an important early Persian motif. However, the elk are an animal that was never seen in Persia and native only to the mountains nearby where the carpet was found. The construction of the Pazyryk carpet is a major mystery since it employs the Turkish knot which was not then, or ever, widely used in Persia. It was, however, used by the Turkic peoples of Anatolia and Eastern Europe. Last, the red dyestuff used to dye the wool was not employed in that region until centuries later. Recent chromatography studies on the rug’s red color have proven that local cochineal was used rather than dyes made from madder root. Cochineal red dyes were only used in China at the time but, if someone knew how to make them, they could be made using local materials. One final observation almost certainly indicates that the carpet was made away from the city-based weaving centers of the time. Once weaving the Pazyryk carpet was nearing completion, the weaver found difficulty in spacing the design. Introduction of pattern elements entirely unrelated to the basic theme are a clear sign of provincial work. The weaver, not under court or commercial control, inserted additional designs in order to solve awkward space problems. Experts have noted that in the outer griffin border two small floral rosettes are inserted to complete the design in a corner. A similar pair of rosettes appears in the horseman’s border in what would have seemed an open space to the weaver. Both pattern anomalies can be seen in the lower right of the photo above and appear only in that corner. All considered, it seems to me that the enigmatic carpet was made nearby where it was found. But, I believe that it was made, or more likely directed by someone, probably a woman, who had either migrated, was captured, or married into the Pazyryk culture. The answer to the mystery behind this rug will never be known, but I have my own ideas.
As mysteries often beget drama, there was a novel recently published that romanticizes the creation of the Pazyryk carpet. It was not written by a rug expert, but by a financial analyst who, after seeing the carpet at the Hermitage Museum was struck by the rug’s unique design and contradicting characteristics. The book is named “Spindle and Bow” and was written by Bevis Longstreth, (Hali Publications LTD, 2005). He imagined and wrote a very entertaining love story that tells of a Scythian prince who comes westward to Persia in search of technology to help his people. There he meets the love of his life. He brings her back to his village in the steppes of Siberia. While the book is a work of fiction it weaves Mr. Longstreth’s exhaustive research into a very plausible explanation of how and why the fantastic Pazyryk carpet was made. Perhaps as important, the story gives us a sense of the human drama of life at the dawning of civilization.
As mysteries often beget drama, there was a novel recently published that romanticizes the creation of the Pazyryk carpet. It was not written by a rug expert, but by a financial analyst who, after seeing the carpet at the Hermitage Museum was struck by the rug’s unique design and contradicting characteristics. The book is named “Spindle and Bow” and was written by Bevis Longstreth, (Hali Publications LTD, 2005). He imagined and wrote a very entertaining love story that tells of a Scythian prince who comes westward to Persia in search of technology to help his people. There he meets the love of his life. He brings her back to his village in the steppes of Siberia. While the book is a work of fiction it weaves Mr. Longstreth’s exhaustive research into a very plausible explanation of how and why the fantastic Pazyryk carpet was made. Perhaps as important, the story gives us a sense of the human drama of life at the dawning of civilization.