Iranian Carpet Means Pasture

For decades, Iranians have been able to find selections of ethnic and ritual values alongside the nature and ecosystem around them, simply by glancing at their feet. The Iranian carpet industry is intertwined with Iran's environment. Beyond the motifs, designs, and decorations of Iranian carpets that come from nature, the threads, colors, wool, yarn, and pile of Iranian carpets are linked to forests, pastures, native plants, minerals, and animal health. These elements were once the foundational pillars of a wholly artistic product with striking color and clarity, securing a prominent place in the world's best museums for at least the past 300 years. According to Ali Hosouri, a researcher of Iranian carpets who has traveled to cities and villages across Iran to gather the culture of carpet terminology, carpet weaving was once in harmony with the country's environment: "Various plants found in nature were used. These plants were harvested in a way that did not harm nature, allowing for future utilization of the same plants." In the past, carpet dyeing was done using these plants along with some mineral sources like clay and animal waste such as cow dung. These methods were cheap, accessible, simple, and environmentally friendly, as well as healthy for humans. Ali Hosouri, a former professor of ancient Iranian languages in Sweden and author of several books on Iranian carpets, noted that methods that grew in harmony with nature did not harm the environment: "In the past, only natural dyes like madder and indigo were used, alongside grape leaves, pomegranate peels, and walnut shells, which returned to nature after dyeing. But now, only chemical dye wastewater, full of harmful toxins, returns to the environment." Critics of traditional carpet dyeing methods argue that the time-consuming and scarce nature of these methods poses significant barriers. They emphasize the lack of agricultural land for planting madder and other plants from which natural dyes are made. Additionally, the growing population and increased demand for carpet production require faster work, alongside limitations on producing natural dyes, such as the time-consuming dyeing process and the shortage of skilled workers for producing natural dyes, which distances them further from traditional methods. This is why chemical dyes are now used in the Iranian carpet industry. According to Dr. Ali Hosouri, these chemical dyes have detrimental effects on both human health and the environment: "By importing chemical dyes, we spend a lot of dollars. These dyes have many side effects for both humans and nature." The colors of carpets, which must resist wear, washing, sunlight, heat, humidity, and dust, are applied to wool that experts say must be Iranian wool to show the true luster of Iranian carpets, a luster that may come from its natural origins. From motifs of trees, fish, flowers, medallions, and livestock to the color and texture of the carpets, how close and peaceful is the relationship between the environment and nature of Iran with Iranian carpets today? Ali Hosouri, who has spent many years traveling to various parts of Iran to research Iranian carpets, discusses the relationship between livestock, carpets, and the environment, paying special attention to the role of livestock in weaving Iranian carpets: "For carpet weaving, they selected the best sheep, keeping only white sheep for this purpose. Thus, Iranian sheep were bred according to the needs of the Iranian carpet industry. However, now the wool from colored sheep is bleached and dyed again. This process strips the wool of its essence, and it no longer has the luster and clarity of real, natural wool." Now, with the daily destruction of nature and forests, and problematic livestock farming for nature and chemical wastewater, where does the environment stand in the Iranian carpet industry? Ali Hosouri, a seasoned expert and researcher of Iranian carpets residing in Stockholm, states: "Once, an environmental professor told me, pasture means carpet, carpet means pasture. We had pastures and raised sheep, and these animals produced wool that was used in Iranian carpets. Until 1953, a significant portion of Iran's budget was funded by carpet revenue, all of which returned to the country's pastures. We destroyed the pastures, and the production of Iranian wool ceased, and now we import most of our wool from abroad, which is not suitable for Iranian carpets at all." Now that eyes are set on the growth of the country's economy and expectations for a reduction in oil exports are increasing, in a situation where Iran has found competitors in China, Pakistan, and India in the handmade carpet sector during sanctions, and now that the export of Iranian carpets will be easier and faster, how kind will the Iranian carpet industry be to our environment? The head of the National Carpet Center of Iran states that despite its enthusiasts and supporters worldwide, Iranian handmade carpets account for more than 30% of the total global carpet trade, with one million carpet weavers in the country who are expected to respond to the conditions of exporting Iranian carpets to the world using non-traditional methods, unnatural colors, and natural resources.