According to the ‘Book of Han’, during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han (140-88 BC), animals such as dogs and horses in the Chang’an palace gardens were adorned with patterned blankets. During that era, dukes and officials of various ranks would use rugs in winter to signify their honor. This suggests that the inception of carpet making may predate the Western Han Dynasty. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, during the Yongyuan period (89-104 BC), Ban Chao was sent to the Western Regions, and his brother Ban Gu wrote to him to exchange 300 bolts of silk for Western Region carpets.
In the 15th year of the Zhanghe era of Gaochang (545 BC), King Jian of Gaochang sent envoys to present carpets to Jiankang (present-day Nanjing). In the 18th year of the Zhenguan era of the Tang Dynasty (AD 644), Xuanzang, upon returning from India, noted that Hotan had begun carpet production when he passed through. These historical accounts confirm the long-standing history of carpet production, circulation, and use in ancient Xinjiang.During the Ming Dynasty, carpet artisan Ma Tuo from the Western Regions was invited by people from Ningxia to Yinchuan to teach carpet techniques. Ma Tuo is revered as the ‘Ancestor of Carpets’. His disciples spread the art of carpet weaving beyond Ningxia to Gansu, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Baotou, and more. Thanks to Ma Tuo’s dissemination, the carpet techniques of the Western Regions spread to the interior. During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, Xinjiang reached a peak in presenting carpets to the court, with a particularly diverse range of varieties. Today, the Embroidery Hall of the Palace Museum displays various wool and silk carpets presented by Xinjiang.
According to the ‘Xinjiang Atlas’, by the end of the Qing Dynasty, Xinjiang carpets were exported annually to Andijan, Kokand, India, and Afghanistan, totaling 4,000 to 5,000 pieces (equivalent to 12,000 to 15,000 square meters). The main production areas were Hotan, Luopu, and Pishan. In the 30th year of the Guangxu era (AD 1904), Pan Xiaosu, the governor of Xinjiang, presented a yellow-bottomed carpet with two dragons playing with a pearl for Empress Dowager Cixi’s 70th birthday. The carpet measured 3.6 zhang in length and 2.6 zhang in width (over 90 square meters). Shortly after the Xin Chou incident, with the nation’s complaints, Cixi felt ashamed and waived the ‘celebration’. The carpet had already been transported to Lanzhou and then returned. Eleven years later, during Yuan Shikai’s restoration, the political affairs office instructed Yang Zengxin, who took this carpet to present to Yuan to show support. This carpet, with its fine craftsmanship, represents the level of carpet craftsmanship in Hotan at the end of the Qing Dynasty. In the early years of the Republic of China, the annual production of Xinjiang carpets was about 15,000 square meters. At that time, in addition to Hotan, Luopu, and Pishan, Kashgar, Shache, Yecheng, and Kucha also produced carpets. Hotan and Luopu had British and Russian carpet merchants purchasing on the spot. Albanians employed local weavers to produce Persian and Turkish carpets. At this time, the patterns had diversified to include not only foreign and Xinjiang ethnic patterns but also dragons, phoenixes, tigers, cranes, deer, and plum, orchid, chrysanthemum, bamboo, and pine. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, in 1950, military personnel stationed in Hotan raised funds to organize more than 70 scattered artisans and established the first collective-owned carpet factory in the ‘birthplace’ of Hotan carpets.After the Soviet Union ceased importing carpets from China in 1963, China found new export markets for its carpets, with Xinjiang carpets entering European countries such as the UK, Germany, and Italy. Due to their low cost, they won many markets. In 1972, following instructions from Premier Zhou Enlai, five major carpet factories were established in Hotan, Kashgar, Aksu, Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, and Urumqi in Xinjiang.
In terms of pattern design, after the liberation, workers engaged in carpet design and production have done a great deal of work and achieved significant results. Xinjiang carpets not only use traditional ethnic patterns inherent to Xinjiang: Kailken (open-style), Qiqiman (scattered flower-style), and Anaguli (pomegranate flower), but also Han ethnic patterns such as Zhuokenusika (antique-style) and Baixiqiuke (five-branch flower-style). For export needs, patterns from Azerbaijan in the Soviet Union and the Arab world’s Jiayinaima have also been used.
Xinjiang carpets hold a prestigious position both domestically and internationally. They are exquisite works of art with valuable artistic and collection value, collected by many domestic art collectors. Historically, Xinjiang carpets were introduced to the Central Plains and various countries around the world as tributes and commodities. Today, the Forbidden City in Beijing houses a large collection of high-quality Xinjiang woolen rugs, silk rugs, gold-plated rugs, and silver-plated rugs, all of which were tributes from Xinjiang during the Qing Dynasty.
Xinjiang carpets have won the Ministry of Light Industry’s Quality Product Award in the National Arts and Crafts Hundred Flowers Award competition. The world-renowned Hotan Foreign Trade Carpet Factory, known for producing Hotan carpets, has designed and produced various carpets and artistic tapestries for the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Huairen Hall, and the Autonomous Region People’s Hall. In 1997 and 1999, to celebrate the establishment of the Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region People’s Government presented tapestries titled ‘Tianshan Song’ and ‘Kanas Lake Scenery’, which fully demonstrated the superb weaving skills of Hotan carpets and expressed the Xinjiang people’s joy for the return of Hong Kong and Macao, and their longing for national unity.Xinjiang carpets are not only famous domestically but also enjoy a high reputation internationally. To this day, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Textile Museum in Washington, and the Frankfurt Craft Museum in Germany all house Xinjiang woolen carpets or silk rugs as treasures for people to admire. Xinjiang carpets, as an important traditional and valuable export commodity from Xinjiang, have won praise from users around the world. They have been sold to more than 80 countries and regions, with the highest annual export volume reaching nearly 100,000 square meters. Every year, foreigners and overseas Chinese visiting Xinjiang like to buy a high-quality Xinjiang carpet. International friends praise Xinjiang carpets as ‘a symbol of Chinese civilization and art’!
The art of Xinjiang carpets has a long history. As early as 2000 years ago, the unique pile knotting method was invented, known as the single warp knot, which is one of the earliest carpet weaving methods in the world.
Later on, the horse hoof knot method, also known as the die knot method, was invented and is now one of the main knotting methods for weaving carpets in the world today. As a result, Xinjiang is considered the birthplace of carpet weaving globally. Xinjiang carpets can be used for flooring, bed padding, as saddles, and cushions for stools and chairs, making them indispensable daily necessities for ethnic minorities and distinctive decorative items.
For a long time, carpets have served as elegant floor decorations, enhancing the aesthetic appeal of interiors. They are not ordinary woven products but are artistic creations that embody the artistic inspiration and imagination of the weavers, carrying the long history and traditional culture of a nation. The patterns and design colors of Xinjiang carpets are distinctively ethnic and richly regional. In pattern design, they absorb the essence of Eastern and Western cultural and religious arts, featuring a unique ethnic style and artistic characteristics. (1) Multi-layered frames, geometric shapes filled with a variety of decorative patterns, structured yet rhythmic, lively and full of life’s charm. The patterns are dignified and elegant, with a strong decorative nature. Common patterns include Kiliki, Shamnus, and Kachiman types. (2) The main body of the pattern consists of different-sized diamond-shaped grids covering the carpet surface, with several layers of border patterns woven around the edges, or corner decorations woven at the four corners. In the center of the main grid, various floral patterns are filled, strictly confined within the grid or rice pattern, forming overlapping patterns. Antique rugs and soft floral carpets often use ancient Buddhist patterns such as flower baskets and lotus flowers as central motifs, and some have Christian crosses woven as hollow heads, surrounded by star-shaped flowers. Prayer rugs, prayer mats, and wall rugs used in mosques often feature patterns composed of Islamic teachings or woven with green leaves of the sacred tree, or symbols of the god of love such as silver stars and crescent moons. In addition, Xinjiang carpets also incorporate patterns from Han Chinese silk brocades, such as the patterns of ‘ten thousand’ and ‘longevity’ that symbolize happiness and eternity. (3) Xinjiang carpets pay great attention to the juxtaposition of similar or contrasting colors, fully displaying the personality of various colors in contrast. Originally, Xinjiang carpets were dyed with natural dyes made from plants and minerals. Now, chemical reactive dyes are used, which make the colors more vibrant, the dyeing more stable, and the colors long-lasting and fade-resistant.