KARS Vintage Kilim 240x90cm

• Unique Vintage Rug - only one available!
• Material: 100% high-quality, hand-spun sheep's wool
• Workmanship: Flat-woven by hand on a traditional wooden loom
• Age: Vintage / Semi-antique. Circa 1960s
• Condition: Vintage in like-new quality due to extensive cleaning and restoration process
• Origin: Kars, Anatolia
• Dimensions: 240cm x 90cm, Height: 3mm

Region of Origin

Anatolia makes up the majority of modern-day Turkey. Carpets from this region are characterized by their indigenous, geometric patterns, featuring many symbols that reflect a traditional way of life in harmony with nature. This is the legacy of an ancient, schematic culture of the Turkic peoples, passed down from generation to generation through the art of weaving.

Symbolism

In Anatolia, a variety of symbols and patterns with origins in the Neolithic period were used in traditional kilims and carpets. Over millennia, nomadic and village women have woven themes significant to their lives into their carpets. One of the main symbols is the figure of "Elibelinde," representing the Cosmic Mother and her creative female power. Other motifs represent desires, such as for happiness and children, while others serve as protection against threats like wolves, scorpions, or the evil eye. Motifs were often combined when woven into patterns on kilims, acquiring multi-layered meanings. Thus, each carpet tells its own story in the form of woven poetry.

Production

Our vintage kilims and carpets were made entirely by hand from the beginning of the 20th century up to the 1970s. In the first step, the weaver sheared, washed, carded, and hand-spun the wool from her own sheep and goats into yarn.

Subsequently, the yarn bundles were dyed in an elaborate, manual process using natural pigments or alizarin dyes. Each individual shade had to be dyed separately. By dyeing independently, the weaver could unleash her creativity and had control over the color scheme. At the same time, the result was subject to a complex interplay of many factors, always resulting in a play of different nuances of a color. This shading in the yarn or in the finished kilim or carpet is called abrash. After the yarn was finished, the warp threads were stretched as tautly as possible over the warp beam of the wooden loom. Only then could the weaver begin weaving her kilim. Every motif, every symbol, every area was woven by hand with great love and patience until the finished kilim was created and the ends of the kilim were knotted and often adorned with elaborately braided fringes. The production process often took several months, sometimes years, and was carried out either by a single weaver or by several women simultaneously. Often, grandmothers, mothers, sisters, other family members, or neighbors would sit at a loom together, telling each other stories or singing songs while weaving. The weaving of a kilim served not only for subsequent use, but the entire process was a ritual, a ceremony, a form of meditation and prayer, an expression of the weaver's emotions, and a medium for passing on stories of past times in the form of woven poetry.

Material

Wool is the most commonly used fiber in the production of Anatolian carpets. Not only is it abundant in Turkey, but it is also a natural and very high-quality material. Hand-spun wool, in particular, has especially long fibers and a high content of lanolin (wool grease). This makes it very durable, long-lasting, and antibacterial.

Natural sheep's wool is a living material that, through the influence of sun, air, and water and careful use, becomes softer and shinier over the years. A material that ages beautifully, is absolutely environmentally friendly, and free of harmful substances. It has the property of self-cleaning and regenerating, brings warmth, a good indoor climate, and pleasant room acoustics to every home. In addition, sheep's wool and goat hair have the property of grounding our bodies and dissipating negative electrostatic charge.

These positive properties prove particularly valuable in large cities and when using electronic devices.

Cleaning and Restoration

The cleaning process of our vintage kilim carpets takes place cyclically and in harmony with nature. During the summer months, our carpets are first thoroughly washed with water and olive soap, and then further cleaned for up to three months on our “Kilim Field” in Antalya with the power of the sun.

Sun exposure and airing remove stubborn stains and discolorations, odors, moths, and bacteria.

This intensive and natural cleaning process allows us to completely forgo environmentally harmful chemicals or health-damaging anti-moth agents.

After sunbathing in Antalya, our kilims and carpets are mechanically dusted and then sent to Istanbul. In our atelier in the old city of Sultanahmet, each carpet is individually stretched into shape, the ends are re-knotted with a special technique to prevent the fabric from unraveling. Holes or discolored areas are re-woven true to the original. The complete cleaning and restoration process takes between six months and two years, depending on the kilim.

With loving and careful treatment, our kilims and carpets can last for many more generations. Our carpets do not require a lot of care, but they do need the right kind of care. We recommend that you regularly and carefully vacuum or beat your carpet to remove dirt and grime. It is sufficient to vacuum your carpet once or twice a month. Vacuuming too frequently can wear down the knots and fibers faster. If your vacuum cleaner has a suction attachment, use it instead of a rotating beater bar.

Every few months, you should flip your carpet over and vacuum the back to remove dirt from the underside of the carpet. It is also helpful to rotate your carpet once a year to ensure even wear.

We recommend having your carpet professionally hand-washed every 3 to 5 years. Please do not take it for steam cleaning or dry cleaning - this will certainly damage the carpet! Choose a carpet cleaner who uses a pH-neutral shampoo or olive soap for hand washing. The soap is worked into the carpet by hand with a soft-bristle brush and then thoroughly rinsed out. If you have any questions or need assistance in choosing a carpet cleaner, please feel free to contact us. We work with trusted oriental carpet cleaners and restorers and can pass on discounted rates to our customers.

A stain, what now?
Blot the stain with a dry cloth until it is dry. If necessary, you can dab it with a very slightly damp cloth and a little olive soap. Please do not attempt to wash your carpet yourself. If the stain does not come out, contact an oriental carpet specialist immediately for cleaning. Adding a lot of liquid can make stain removal more difficult and even worsen them. This is because moisture spreads along the fibers and can get trapped in carpets with horizontal fibers (like flat weaves).

Food residue can be easily scraped off or brushed out once dry.