Tibetan Rugs - By: john alis

Tibetan rug making is an ancient art and tradition of the
nomadic people, who made rugs originally for their personal use,
from floor coverings to horse saddles. Tibetan carpets were
influenced more by tribal culture than Persian or Turkish
design. What is unique about Tibetan rugs is that everything is
virtually done by hand. Tibetans used wool from the tribes’
sheep or other animals, which created long, high quality shiny
strands of yarn.

The rugs are woven by wrapping a continuous length of
yarn over a rod laid across the warps stretched on the
loom. When the rod has been wrapped for its entire length, a
knife is slid along the rod, cutting the wrapped yarn into two
rows of pile tufts. Additional distinguishing characteristics of
Tibetan rugs are their vivid colors, huge and few motifs, and
relatively plain and dominant backgrounds. The background colors
are primarily blue, black, red, and orange. The motifs are woven
in red, orange, pink, yellow, beige, blue, green and white.

In the early 1950s, when Chinese communists occupied Tibet, the
Tibetan refugees fled to India and Nepal and brought their
unique rug making expertise with them. Today, the rug making
business is one of the largest industries in Nepal.

Types and styles of Tibetan rugs are categorized by their
design, such as medallions, flowers and rosettes, mythological
animal motifs, and geometric. Medallion designs are
characterized by one or three central medallions with multiple
borders. The medallions are typically square surrounded by
flowers, or round with flower inside. The flowers can be lotus
or peonies. Rosette- and floral-design styles either have two or
three large flowers in the center with borders or flowers
scattered throughout the entire carpet with no borders. The
mythological animal and bird designs include the dragon, the
phoenix, the white Manchurian crane, the bat and the bee.
Sometimes they come in a medallion layout or are in an all-over
layout. Usually there are no more than four of the shapes in one
rug. The geometric designs, which are less frequently seen, come
in a paneled, all-over layout with flat-looking flowers inside
either square or diamond cells.

Tibetan carpets were influenced more by tribal culture than Persian or Turkish
design. What is unique about Tibetan rugs is that everything is virtually done by hand. Tibetans used wool from the tribes’ sheep or other animals, which created long, high quality shiny strands of yarn.

john alis was born in long island in 1970. he writes articles and
childern books. he now lives in holand.