A Brief History of Chinese Rugs
Chinese Rug ( Peonies & Butterflies)
The long and fascinating history hand knotted rugs has its roots in five countries; China, Egypt, India and Persia (now Iran). Known collectively as Oriental rugs, their interest and value has continued for several centuries.
China has a long tradition of weaving rugs – the first Chinese rugs originated in the north-west of the country in the area around Xinjiang. About the time of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC – 24 AD) the technique of rug making spread along the Silk Route extending from Qinghai, Gansu, Nigxia, Shenmu and Yulin to Inner Mongolia and Shanxi. Rug weaving later extended into other locations such as Peking (now Beijing), Tianjing, Hebei and Shandong, where their own distinctive styles evolved.
However, the art of knotting rugs as we traditionally think of Oriental rugs was not introduced until around the 15th and 17th century – but once this technique was introduced, it became the new standard.
Traditional Chinese hand knotted rugs were normally made from wool but northern nomads would also use goat and camel hair. Early on, Chinese weavers found that silk had special qualities that gave nuances of color as the light source changed.
The patterns in classic Chinese rugs are often taken from the patterns of the porcelain painters and from silks, and the designs typically followed other established art forms. These are typically Buddhist and Taoist symbols including the lotus flower, clouds, dragons, phoenix, elephants, horses, and bats. (The bat shares its name with the Chinese word for luck and is a popular symbol of good fortune.) These designs are largely symbolic rather than purely decorative and the traditional colors include black, blue, red, white, beige and yellow.
In the 1980’s the Oriental market was in a state of decline in China as well as the rest of the world as aniline dyes, machine-spun wool, and poor quality dominated the market. At that time, a group of men sparked a “renaissance” in the modern rug market by returning to the traditional labor intensive method of rug making using vegetable or high quality chrome dyes and superior hand spun wools and silks.
China was involved with this renaissance and several weaving centers were opened up in China dedicated to producing high quality hand knotted rugs. The patterns on these rugs can vary with the weavers producing both traditional classic Chinese patterns in traditional colors, and also branching out in to new designs suited to modern tastes.
Please let me know your thoughts in the comment section above.
I really really like area rugs, but I haven’t yet shell out for a really good one. I purchased a number of rugs from Target a couple of months ago realizing that they just wouldn’t last. My personal rug style leans towards the types I just find it difficult to afford at present. But I really really take advantage of reading through a variety of articles about area rugs and look for new good ideas regularly. We have really been thinking of narrowing my purchase towards ‘Eco -Friendly rugs, and wonder what anybody thinks or exactly what information some might have.
Hi Milton, thanks for your comments. In my opinion, you can’t get more “eco-friendly” than hand-knotted rugs! While machine made rugs are made with lots of energy, synthetic dyes, and toxic glues, true hand-knotted rugs are made with 100% natural ingredients (wool, cotton, silk), and people powered labor. The only real energy is in the transport of these rugs from their place of origin (generally the East).
In addition, we carry a line of hand-knotted rugs made with Jute (aka hemp). These are considered even more eco-friendly – primarily because jute is an all-plant material (as opposed to wool) and is grown quickly.
Regards,
Susan