The Armenian art of carpet weaving

If you are interested in antique rugs, make it your resolution in 2023 to explore Armenian Medieval art so you can understand where most of the motifs we see on antique Caucasian and Anatolian rugs originate from. It’s an evolution from the Hittites to the Urartians to the Byzantines. But you have to start somewhere to trace back.

Here are two common border motifs on Caucasian rugs. Four arrows make a Christian cross. Or turned 45 degrees also makes an “X’ in the negative space—the ancient cross of the Byzantines. Below you can see the motif on medieval Illuminated manuscripts and the stole of a contemporary Armenian priest.

People who endlessly argue these are not Christian crosses on rugs—only “random design elements”—need psychological help or have a disinformation agenda.

by Arto Tavukciyan