Kilim Rugs – Persian

The term ‘Kilim’ originates from the Persian gel?m (????) where it means ‘to spread roughly’. Perhaps of Mongolian origin. The Turkish name is “Kilim” as well. Like pile carpets, Kilim rugs go back to the ancient times.
The explorer Mark Aurel Stein found Kilims dating to at least the fourth or fifth century CE in Hotan, China:

“As Kilims are much less durable than rugs that have a pile to protect the warp and weft, it is not surprising that few of great age remain. The weave is almost identical with that of modern Kilims, and has about fourteen threads of warp and sixteen threads of weft to the inch. The pattern consists of narrow stripes of blue, green, brownish-yellow, and red, containing very small geometric designs. With this one exception, so peculiarly preserved, there are probably very few over a century old.”