Rug making

[Manfred M]

These two Kashmiri brothers are hand-knotting a rug using wool and silk. What was interesting is that they "sing" the patterns that they are knotting. The patterns are written down and they have these pattern sheets on the loom. It takes a couple of years to complete a rug. The work is only done by men.










Other than the fingers used to tie the knots, the rug makers use a loom (on the left edge of the first image) and these three tools; a curved knife which is used to cut the threads, a comb that is used to push the knots tightly together and scissors to cut other things, including the finished rug from the loom. Both rug makers in the shot are holding / using a knife that is in their right hand.