The Pazyryk carpet , believed to be the world's oldest pile woven carpet, was excavated in 1949 from the Pazyryk burial mounds in the Altai Mountains in southern Siberia. The permafrost in the burial chamber prevented it from decaying, preserving almost all of its original vivid colors and intricate patterns. Measuring approximately 2m square, the carpet is currently housed in the Hermitage Museum in Russia.
Pazyryk carpets are made from high-quality wool and dyed in red or indigo with natural dyes. They are pile woven (a technique of weaving knots into the carpet) with symmetrical double knots (Turkish knots). The knot density reaches approximately 36 knots per square centimeter, and the total number of knots is estimated to be over one million, demonstrating an incredible level of sophistication for a carpet from the 5th century BC.
The design of Pazyryk carpets is typical of a repeating central motif surrounded by multiple borders, a traditional design that is also seen in later Persian carpets. The animal and equestrian motifs depicted are also common to ancient Persian art, and the equestrian figures on the outer edges are particularly reminiscent of the reliefs in the Persepolis Palace. Due to these similarities, it was initially assumed that the carpet was made in Persia (Achaemenid Empire). Furthermore, Egyptian jewelry and Chinese bronze mirrors have also been excavated from the same tomb, indicating that exchanges with the Persian cultural sphere were already occurring as early as the 5th century BC via East-West trade routes.
Pazyryk carpets are evidence of an advanced carpet culture that existed already in the 5th century BC. This tradition later spread to the Middle East and Central Asia, especially in Persia, where carpet art reached its peak during the Safavid dynasty (16th-17th centuries).
