CARPET MANUFACTURE DURING THE REPUBLICAN ERA OF TURKEY: 1923-1980

Abstract

According to research, Anatolian carpet weaving has continued its existence as a traditional textile production for over a thousand years. There are many researches and publications on the history of carpet weaving in Anatolia. These studies suggests that carpet production has been affected by many factors such as political, economic, commercial, technical and artistic developments, and it has undergone periodic and local changes.

The economical developments which started with the industrial revolution in Europe in the 18^th Century laid the foundations of the carpet weaving during the Republican era. The decisions taken by Republicab gocernments also determined the road map for carpet weaving to take its current form in the country. However, succesive wars, economical crises, commercial and technological developments in The World and Turkey also effected carpet manufactiring. Becouse of these factors output of carpet manufacture tended to drop, rise, change in good or bad directions and caused a transformation in the history of the Republic of Turkey. The paper dicusses the development of carpet manufacture during the Republican era between 1923-1980 in Turkey. It analyses; Desicions taken by governments voncerning carpet manufacture, International developments related to global carpet trade, Developments in national and local carpet weaving and Transformation from hand weaving to machine weaving.