ETHNIC GEOGRAPHY OF THE CARAVAN ROUTE

Once again the Ministry of Culture and Tourism is organizing and holding an exhibition that is interesting both in substance and content at the Arts Gallery of the Museum Centre. This time the exposition is dedicated to the idea of the Silk Road and covers the very interesting way of life and dress of the peoples who have been geographically linked with the Silk Road - the caravan route which emerged 121 years BC and linked China with Central Asia, Western Asia and the Caucasus. History tells us that the first camel caravan set off along this route, carrying silk and bronze mirrors. Silk was the most saleable and recognised product (especially by the Europeans!) because of its considerable hygienic value and it was silk that helped the Europeans withstand a general disaster - parasitical insects.

Then, along with silk, they started to transport spices, military equipment, gold and silver, semi-precious stones, glassware, articles of leather and wool, carpets and cotton fibres, exotic fruits, such as melons and peaches, broad-tailed sheep and hunting dogs, leopards and lions. From China came porcelain, plate, rice, tea, cosmetics and tortoiseshell. During the caravan journeys in both directions the goods travelled from country to country and from hand to hand. And the Great Silk Road became a journey not of people (merchants) but of goods and technology! This was mankind's first experience of the development of economic and cultural ties. And this also meant the distribution of the secrets of the production of silk, powder and paper, as well as the spiritual beliefs linked with Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and Manichaeism. There was also an exchange of the arts - dance, music, fine arts, architecture and, of course, ancient fashions. And the latter, as this exhibition shows, was not the least important thing in the lives of the men and women who lived on the caravan route - especially the women! This road gave rise to many fairy tales, legends and historical falsifications and led to the creation of a literature that embraced culture, politics, economics, diplomacy and research. The Great Silk Road played a huge part in the mutual integration of the peoples whose geographical location was linked with the Silk Road like the thread of a silkworm.

The exhibition, which was brought from the collection of the Russian Ethnographical Museum of St. Petersburg in Baku, includes articles of daily use, craftsmen's tools, household accessories, examples of silk and woollen fibres, as well as articles of men's and women's clothing from Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan and Dagestan. The exhibition profusely illustrates the exchange process of technology and the changes in fashion of the period.

Turkmen women's dress

A dress of rich, red silk, pants, high hat and a cape of rich woollen embroidery. The head-dress and neckwear are adorned with cornelian. This stone was quite expensive and believed to have medicinal properties. Of course, an outfit such as this would not be worn by a woman from a poor family. But if you can imagine how much such a head-dress weighed you would not envy this affluent woman-about-town! 

Uzbek woman's dress (Khorezm)

Here we have the outfit of a married woman from Khorezm. The costume of Uzbek women from Khorezm differed significantly from the dress of women from other regions of Uzbekistan in its unique adornment and head-dress, range of colour and also the absence of embroidery. The head-wrap is tucked in using strips of varying colours and quality, for example silk and cotton. The overall outfit consisted of a long tunic shirt and cape, felt boots and embellished with an ethnic ornament. Silk thread was used for the embroidery. Adornments of coral and rare impregnations of turquoise and copper were set into the head-dress and were fairly heavy.

Kyrgyz woman's dress

The Kyrgyz generally used only woollen fabrics. Other fibres, such as silk and cotton, were purchased from neighbours. The tunic shirt was in the form of a loose garment of rich silk. The waistline was emphasized by the use of a broad cotton-fabric belt, not for appearance, but for comfort. The head-dress was made in the form of a turban made up of 30-40 m of fabric. The head-dress was embellished with embroidered bands and at the top covered with embroidered wraps. Kyrgyz women's favourite adornment is coral beads with rare impregnations of turquoise and silver strips.

Kubachi woman's dress

Everyday wear consisted of a dress of woollen, semi-woollen or cotton fabric. Subtle shades are obligatory. For outdoor wear the head-gear is covered with silk and gold wrap. It is wound into a headband fitting closely to the head, forming a band of another colour. The upper dress is essentially a light coat which may be made either from sheepskin or brocade trimmed with fur (as in this case). The boots are usually of felt. For adornment the highland women wore simple silver rings without stones and with engraving and niello, narrow silver bracelets, flat with niello and engraving. Every woman had to wear special lingerie of thin, cotton fabric. The Kubachi still have a custom of wearing traditional national costume. When people from other towns visit Kubachi they always change into traditional national dress. It is regarded as unacceptable to ignore this tradition. 

The wealthy highlander's dress

No self-respecting highlander would leave home without his weapon, which in his case would be a sabre, or translated from the Adyg language - a large knife. It is cherished and carefully protected and in winter it is carried in a fur sheath. The weapon was an integral part of a highlander's outfit. The burka is a sleeveless cloak of white, black or brown felt. The white burka is for ceremonial occasions. The long burka is the attire for a horseman. In the past it was the outfit of a traveller, as well as the dress of shepherds, protecting them from the wind and the cold. Nowadays it is a tribute to tradition and it is preserved as an ethnic custom. A hood was worn on top of the head-dress during bad weather for protection against the wind and rain. In summer, it was good protection from the sun. It has long ends like fans for wrapping round the neck. The papakha is a men's Cossack fur hat made of sheep's wool or karakul.

The dress of the dervish

A dervish was a member of the destitute Sufi order of Qalandars. The dervishes wore patchwork dress as a sign of contempt for material comforts. And those whose status in the order was higher wore a smock of coarse cloth, a belt with an amulet, a hat with a woollen fringe and carried a bamboo cane as a symbol of seeking a spiritual path. And each ribbon meant he had some experience of the path to spiritual perfection, a victory over his own inadequacy, because the object of Sufism is the fostering of a "perfect person", free from the hustle-and-bustle of the world, who has succeeded in rising above the negative qualities of his nature. Each ribbon not only has its own colour, but also its meaning, because for the Sufis each human flaw - avarice, envy, wrath, devilry, etc - had its own colour. Sufism has inspired its own followers, exposed the deep qualities of the soul and played a big part in the development of aesthetics, ethics, literature and the arts. 

The yurt

A nomadic dwelling, it is one of mankind's greatest inventions. Assembling a yurt is like creating the world. The door is a gateway from one world to another. The threshold is the border between the outer and the human world. The centre of the yurt is its dome and beneath it the hearth. This is a sacred place. The interior of the yurt has its own traditional zones: the women's is at the entrance on the right - the most inconvenient place where household items and food supplies are stored; the men's is on the left where the harnesses, weapons and other male things are kept. Everything that is on the right-hand side personifies the permanency of the world which the God of nature favours. The women's side is the life-asserting one. Here, a person is the master of their own wealth. The male side personifies the path-road, the perpetual change of day and night and the vanity of the world. It is unpredictable and full of alarm and hardship. Here, a person feels a visitor in this world. One had to enter the yurt with the right foot to step over the threshold. One should not step on the threshold. One of the maxims of Genghis Khan's codes of law said: "Stepping on the threshold is punishable by death, for this is a true sign of evil intentions against the owners." The decor of the Turkic yurt shook the imagination: it was draped throughout with carpets. So, as they entered the yurt, the nomads took of their boots.

The bazaar

There is no spectacle more exotic and attractive than the oriental bazaar. That is obviously why all Europeans, and especially film makers, love it so much. In the old days the bazaar was the place of social life. This was where rumours started and spread and public sentiments in the oriental cities took shape. At the same time, this was a place not only for trade but also for entertainment and leisure. Doctors would gather here, street actors and musicians performed and dervishes with their religious chanting. And the tradesmen and merchants from distant countries came to the bazaar with their rare and exotic wares, including silk.

Silken passions

China kept the secret of the production of silk for more than three thousand years. Any attempt to take cocoons out of the country was punishable by death. The legend goes that two wandering monks managed to take the larvae of a silkworm in their bamboo canes to Byzantium. The silk appeared in India thanks to the cunning of an Indian king who, marrying a Chinese princess and demanded the seeds of a mulberry tree and the larvae of a silkworm as a dowry. 

Europe's great demand for silk led to the creation of the Great Silk Road. When it appeared in Rome the silk was so expensive that it was valued at the weight of gold. In Paris in the 15th century it was fashionable to cover the bed with silk sheets. It was believed that silk enhanced one's amorous powers. And the Marquise de Pompadour introduced silk underwear into fashion. 

Azerbaijan was for a long time the centre of trade on the Silk Road. Since the Middle Ages architectural monuments have been preserved in Baku, Naxcivan, Barda and Seki reflecting the impact of the dynasty of the Shirvanshahs, the Mongolian dynasty in Central Asia and the Safavids who ruled here. It was at this time that intellectuals - mathematicians, astronomers, philosophers and poets - appeared in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani culture became rich under the influence of the merchants and scientists from Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe, India, Iran and Turkey. High-quality Azerbaijani articles of wood, ceramics, metal and silk were sold on the Silk Road. But most in demand were the Azerbaijani carpets which won a reputation for their designs of extraordinary beauty.