Wool tulu rug

Deep in the heart of Turkey lies an area composed of thirty or so small, ancient villages, all known as Karapinar. One village almost became extinct when the land beneath it slipped away during the 20th century; but all was not lost. In a small feat of human ingenuity, the entire village was relocated ten kilometers away on firmer ground. We call this place New Karapinar.

Tulu Rug, Central Turkey (detail)

Unfortunately, the land around New Karapinar isn’t much better than the land around the old place. It sits in a dry lake bed and is subject to droughts. The ten inches of rain it receives each year comes down in torrents, and what doesn’t wash away is mercilessly blown away by sand storms. New Karapinar is not a tourist destination, but there are three things which make it noteworthy: the people, whose commitment to their households and each other is unwavering; their sheep, whose wool is legendary despite the arid land; and the local weavers, sensitive women who are known far and wide for making distinctive, artful rugs called tulus (too loos).

In the rug world, tulus are known for their lush pile and simple, plain backgrounds, which occasionally feature minimal, non-repetitive patterns. Tulus

make statements, not with dazzling complexity, but virtuosic simplicity, a proclamation made convincingly by this featured tulu rug. A single diamond sits just off center, where it was consciously and conspicuously placed on a neutral, natural pile. Perhaps it refers to the location of New Karapinar? Maybe the background refers to the lake bed where it was born? We can’t say this is so; but this rug says something else. It says, if you look hard enough, even in the most desolate, inhospitable places you can still find beauty, meaning, and a diamond in the rough.

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