Page 27 - Azərbaycan xalçaları

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Azerbaijani carpets / TABRIZ GROUP
On the bottom left corner, Khos-
row’s father Hormuz is depicted.
He was one of the Sassanid shahs.
Hormuz was Anushirvan’s son.
According to legends, he was a fair
shah. He even deprived Khosrow
of power and proclaimed justice
although Khosrow Parviz remained
irresponsible.
On the bottom right corner, a
depiction of Firidun is found. Firi-
dun is one of the legendary shahs
of Iran whose name was men-
tioned in Ferdowsi’s (940-1020/30)
“Shahnameh.” On the border of
the carpet, there are portrayals of
ogres and fairies. These depictions
also signify parts of “Shahnameh.”
Firidun is among the shahs de-
scribed in “Shahnameh,” although
the ogres and fairies inscribed on
the carpet are imaginary.
The unidentified shahs depicted
on the main border are also legend-
ary shahs.
The girls around Anushirvan in the middle field symbolize his angels. It
shows that the haremwas very special for Anushirvan. The imaginary fair-
ies are depicted multiple times in the middle field. The ogres and fairies
appear often in “Shahnameh,” so the choice to depict Firidun from among
other shahs of the time is not accidental.
In this carpet many animals are depicted, but all are imaginary. None of
the animal descriptions in Ferdowsi’s “Shahnameh” are real. The human
descriptions inside the sunrays above the shahs’ heads are signs of their
resplendency, as if they shine everywhere like the sun.