Persian Carpet - History - Zoroastrian Period

Zoroastrian Period

In a unique archaeological excavation in 1949, the exceptional Pazyryk carpet was discovered among the ices of Pazyryk Valley, in Altai Mountains in Siberia. The carpet was found in the grave of a Scythian prince. Radiocarbon testing indicated that the Pazyryk carpet was woven in the 5th century BC. This carpet is 283 by 200 cm (approximately 9.3 by 6.5 ft) and has 36 symmetrical knots per cm² (232 per inch²). The advanced weaving technique used in the Pazyryk carpet indicates a long history of evolution and experience in this art. Pazyryk carpet is considered as the oldest carpet in the world. Its central field is a deep red color and it has two wide borders, one depicting deer and the other Persian horsemen.

However, it is believed that the carpet from Pazyryk is not likely a nomadic product, but a product of the Achaemenid period.

Historical records show that the Achaemenian court of Cyrus the Great at Pasargade was decked with magnificent carpets. This was over 2,500 years ago, while Persia was still in a weak alliance with Alexander the Great. Alexander II of Macedonia is said to have been dazzled by the carpets in the tomb area of Cyrus the Great at Pasargade.

By the sixth century, Persian carpets of wool or silk were renowned in court circles throughout the region. The Bahârestân (spring) carpet of Khosrow I was made for the main audience hall of the Sassanid imperial Palace at Ctesiphon in the Sassanid province of Khvârvarân (in present-day Iraq). It was 450 feet (140 m) long and 90 feet (27 m) wide and depicted a formal garden. With the occupation of the Sassanid capital, Tuspawn, in the 7th century CE, the Baharestan carpet was taken by the Arabs, cut into small fragments and divided among the victorious soldiers as booty.

According to historians, the famous Tāqdis throne was covered with 30 special carpets representing 30 days of a month and four other carpets representing the four seasons of a year.