Some time
ago newspapers reported that there is only one man left in the wold who speaks a
certain language and that when he dies the language and that when he dies the
language will be forever lost. It will not be, the first or the last language to
be lost, but it is sad to know it happens. Turkish weavers are not quite so
close to the loss of the language of motif and colour but there is concern that
the end may not be too many years hence.
Most new carpets and kilims are produced in factories or in
cattage industry situations where the motifs and colours are dictated by
producers and distributors. The colours and motifs are being changed to suit the
western market and its influence. To be a success in the market place, the
product must suit the colours and furniture styles used by a different culture.
Small woven signs or simbols are called motifs and overall pattern is called the
design.
As one deciphers the symbols of a small prayer rug one
discovers, for example the unbearable agony of losing a child; the grief is as
real and as fresh as when the weaver knotted the patterns of her sorrow over
forty years ago and one becomes intenesly aware of the human expression in the
carpet or kilim. Working on such a carpet becomes therapeutic. The carpet
becomes a kind of supreme cominication reaching out to God and men in one
spontaneous proclamation.
There are also happy kilims and carpets telling of joy and
dreams of lasting happiness though always with an understanding of fate's fickle
ways. There may be embedded in the carpet or kilim a motif the evil eye repeated
throughout the carpet or kilim. Whether an eigth square meter kilim for the long
winter or a shopping bag to carry to market. The kilim is always an expression
of the artistic skils of the weaver and a public message to the outer world of
the family's own history.
The nomad women did not have to leave home or change her life
still to find herself. With her weaving she could make a statement that
would outlast her own lifetime and posibly those of her children and grand
children. It would be seen by family, friends and visitors for generations
and might even end up in the home of some Western stranger. She would
have been proud to have them exclaimed over her clever design, colour
sense and weaving skill. If they could not read the message she had written
so clearly in the colour and motifs she had used, they could at least
apprreciate her betiful work.
To own a carpet or kilim means two things. Firstly,
it is having a beatifully crafted piece of art, with harmonious colours
and exciting patterns, with which to decorate the house. Secondly, it
is like taking a page out of an Anatolian native's life a page out of
a history of a rich, though sadly dyeing tradition. For those who enjoy
the art of old nomadic pieces and would like to learn a little of their
language, the following basic motif vocabularry is provided.
|
Status of Weaver
Hair Band (Single):
This sing expresses the yearning of a young woman to get
married. Traditionally in Anatolian vilages the girls keep their hair long and
will not cut it until they get married.
 
|
| Ying &
Yang:
This motif singnifies that the weaver is married as well as
love and unity. Inherited from the Far East, this symbol denotes love and
unity
 
|
| Hands on Hips:
The mother Goddess of ancient Matriarchal beliefs. At an
early stage all superhuman powers were represented by goddesses. This motif is
only shown when the weaver gives a birth to a boy. The hands on hips shows that
she is very proud
  |
Happiness
Motifs such as evil eye and ram's horn signify that the
weaver is happy and she is thanking God for her happiniess.
Eye (Evil Eye):
This signifies a bad, or nasty look, which is believed to be
encountered by an object which looks similiar to an eye. In its most simplified
form a triangle is used
. |
| Ram's Horn:
The ram's horn denotes fertility,heroism and
power.
|
| Relationship
The chest, comb, fetter and fertility motifs express a
weaver's relationship with her husband and her in-loves.
Chest Comb:
The chest and comb motifs are symbols of the bridge,
marriage and happiness in Anatolian folklore. The chest, or clothes sack among
wandering tribes, represent the girl's longing for marriage, since they contain
her trousseau or dowry.
 
|
| Fertility:
The relationship between the sexes, and proliferation.
Stylised versions of multigrained plants, for example, wheat and pomegranate
which denote fertility.
A fetter is used to prevent horses from running away. In
kilims, it represents harmony and togetherness of lowers.
 
| Family Signs and Birds
Family Sign: Family, or clan signs are used
all tribal people, to mark their sheep, kilims and other possesions.
  |
| Birds:
Bird motifs have various meanings. Birds of pray, such as
eagle falcon and hawk represent strength and power. These bird symbols can be
found on the Selcuks and Ottomans. Birds can also symbolize the celestial
messenger and longevity. The phoenix and the dragon fighting symbolize the
comming of spring rain.
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TURKEY > BRIEF >> Carpet
