Carpets

For centuries, the people of the land called Azerbaijan have been weaving some of the most beautiful, most mysterious and most elegant carpets in the world of oriental carpets. Owing to some odd geopolitics, the carpets they wove were not identified as Azerbaijani, they were instead called "Caucasian" or "Persian" depending on whether the carpet was woven north or south of the Araz River that now divides the Republic of Azerbaijan (former Soviet republic) and Iran. According to several experts on oriental carpets, up to 90% of the so-called "Caucasian" carpets were woven by Azerbaijani weavers living in the region now known as the Republic of Azerbaijan, and up to 50% of the so-called "Persian" carpets were woven by Azerbaijani weavers in the part of Iran called Azerbaijan.

In the great auction houses, Christie's, Sotheby's and others, Azerbaijani carpets have received the highest bid prices per square foot of all oriental carpets. The carpet in the White House is a Heriz, woven by Azerbaijani weavers living in Heriz, Iran.

Azerbaijani carpets are known for their astonishing geometrical forms. Rather than depicting somewhat realistic life forms, Azerbaijani carpets express the energetic essence of life forms. Some of the best, most intriguing carpet designs, especially the smaller carpets originating from the northern Azerbaijan in the South Caucasus Mountains region, call to mind the abstract art of modern era sensibilities, and the mystifying shapes seen in Rorschach 'inkblot' patterns used in psychoanalysis to plumb the depths of the human unconscious. One sees in the designs what is in the imagination of the beholder, a surprisingly sophisticated artistic flourish.

What could be the reason for such incredible visual beauty and mystery? Many Azerbaijanis believe that the ancient mystical tradition of mugham music has sensitized the artistic imagination of the Azerbaijani weaver, who prefers the abstract to the concrete in their woven art treasures.