Carpet Saddlebags of Burdur Province

Abstract

In Turkish culture, the harness and saddle were as important as the horses. There are saddle carpets, which are special ceremony saddles. Carpet saddlebags are preferred by the village and townspeople because of the serviceability of them as saddle carpets. Using a carpet saddlebag was a sign of prosperity and recognition among Turkish men. There are poems written about this issue. Young girls wove their fiancé special saddlebags, which became a very important part of their trousseau. Carpet saddlebags are woven with the symmetrical (Turkish) knot. Pocket and middle surfaces are knotted carpet woven, while the reverse side is weftfaced, plain woven. Carpet saddlebags are generally border lined. Grounds have ¼ repeats, which is called köşe-göbek, ¼ part of center design placed on the corner and there are simple repetition of motifs in connectors. To the life span of the carpet saddlebags, which are subjected to frictional damage when used, the edges are covered with leather bands, which are called 'saraçlama'. Also, the pocket covers are made of leather. There are regular holes on the covers and 8-9 cm long leather loops are placed on the plain woven strip of the edge to the cover. If wanted, the pockets can be closed by pulling the loops through the holes and making a chain by repeating the thread. These saddlebags are the cultural heritage that is Turkish lifestyle and art that reached this day as a testimony of aesthetics. In the 1970s, these saddles, whose function was replaced by cars, were found in museums and private collections. These carpet saddlebags are subject to Article were determined by the scanning method at Burdur Museum, towns and villages in the area of research done in 2013.