The Crusaders who traveled to the Middle East in the 1100s and 1200s probably brought carpets to Europe.
Hand-woven carpets were being made in Europe by the Saracens of southern Spain as early as the 13th century. The carpet became widespread because the Moors, who invaded France in that century, established several carpet factories there.
Carpet production was a thriving business in Persia in the 14th and 15th centuries, reaching its peak during the reign of Shah Abbas in the 16th century.
Isfahan was the center of the Persian carpet industry, which created intricate patterns in rich colors and weaves. Persian-style carpets often had as many as 1,000 knots per square inch. These carpets, like those made in Turkey, were imported into Western European countries as early as the 15th century. England began producing carpets in the 16th century.
During the reign of King Henry IV in the years 1553–1610, a group of Persian weavers was persuaded to leave Isfahan and work at the Louvre Palace in Paris.
In 1628, a carpet factory was opened in a former soap factory in Chaillot, France. French carpet weavers created designs in vivid colors on deep backgrounds based on Oriental motifs. Later, the designs followed French styles.
By 1700, England was the center of the European carpet industry.
The English inventor Edmund Cartwright developed power looms in the 1780s.
Tapestries were made in Aubusson, a small town in central France, which has since become a trade name for the carpets woven there.
In 1825, the factory was transferred to the Gobelins family and still operates today. Brussels also became an important weaving center in the 16th century, and by the 18th century it had become one of the world’s main suppliers of floor tapestries. Evidence of this can be found in the rich collection in the Vatican.
Michał Miłowski
