KCEC was a job creation program promoting rug weaving in Afghanistan. Alex Zahir was the Director of Production. It was sponsored by USAID (from the people of the United States to the people of Afghanistan). The program was outstanding, as it created thousands of jobs amongst the poorest people--rug weaving women and related businesses. Fortunately, the people-to-people connections we built between Afghan rug producers and international rug companies are thriving. Orders are being placed; funds are somehow being transferred. Both sides keep me posted and are grateful for my presence. With a small commission, AZ guarantees the security of deliveries for both sides. So AZ is not only a dealer, but a conduit too. So AZ is not only a dealer, but a match maker too.
Alex Zahir and Rob Leahy addressed a group of Afghan rug producers in this northern city of Afghanistan. Among the topics of best practices, social responsibility, consistent production, and customers’ expectations, Leahy and Zahir also informed the Afghan producers of a trade event in Dubai. International buyers will be there to generate orders from the Afghans. The program is sponsored by United States Department of Commerce.
Alex Zahir and Rob Leahy return from northern Afghanistan after visiting rug producers who participated at the Dubai Match Making Conference on September 20-22, 2012. The conference generated $1.7 million in product orders. For more information, see this link: https://www.rugnews.com/news-archives/11122012-afghanistanusa-carpet-conference-in-dubai-3564
https://www.rugnews.com/news-archives/11122012-afghanistanusa-carpet-conference-in-dubai-3564Alex Zahir and Rob Leahy, after witnessing an amazing $1.7 million success in Afghanistan joining rug makers with international rug merchants, now believe future stability in Afghanistan could be achieved through more rug making investment. The manufacture of carpets is one of the largest employers that touches millions of lives. Zahir and Leahy were the two SMEs assigned to what turned out to be a multimillion-dollar exchange.
James Opie is a rug expert who authored several books on tribal rugs. He also invested a considerable amount in the rug industry to establish his James Opie Collection. Bob Carr is a professional rug cleaner from Knoxville, Tennessee. To see Opie’s books visit this link: https://www.amazon.com/Books-James-Ope/s?rh=n%3A283155%2Cp_27%3AJames+Opie
Alex Zahir raises concerns over the uncertain future of Afghan carpet makers. The rug hanging in the background was conceptualized by Alex Zahir and designed by a young Turkish designer named Gulbahar Gumusten. The rug is part of the Domotex Design Contest. It represents 16 different ethnic groups in Afghanistan through elements of motifs or designs in their artifacts. Encompassing the motifs are the drying tears of Afghan eyes from four decades of war.
Doug Lay of Persian Carpet is a veteran rug expert, dealer and authority in antique rugs, most importantly a good friend and a supreme human being. Apart from business, which I enjoyed very much, I was treated by every one of his sales team, especially his Sales Manager Steve Williams, John Ali, and his daughter Cynthia, with the utmost respect. Doug and his wife Nelda made me feel part of the family. Not only did they have me as a guest in their home for every visit, but, as a household, they named my guest room “Alex’s room.”
In this presentation, I focused on elements of Afghan culture that affect the rug industry. I made three points. First, Afghanistan is composed of open land with shepherds and their herds. Second, the thirty – forty tribes in Afghanistan are more or less self-sufficient. Therefore there is no centralized economy nationwide. And last, the tribal orientation translates into an inherently resilient environment with respect to foreign intervention.
Sharbat Gula (Pashto: شربت ګله; born c. 1972) is an Afghan woman who became internationally recognized as the 12-year-old subject in Afghan Girl, a 1984 portrait taken by American photojournalist Steve McCurry that was later published as the cover photograph for the June 1985 issue of National Geographic. The portrait was shot at Nasir Bagh, Pakistan, while Gula was residing there as an Afghan refugee fleeing the Soviet–Afghan War. Despite the photograph's high global recognition, Gula's identity remained unknown until 2002, when her whereabouts were verified and she was photographed for the second time in her life.[1] Having lived and raised a family in Pakistan for 35 years, Gula was arrested by Pakistani authorities in 2016 and subsequently deported to Afghanistan in 2017 on the charge of possessing forged identity documents. However, in November 2021, Gula was granted asylum in Italy, three months after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharbat_Gula"Tribal Rugs of Northern Afghanistan" for the program by Abdul Zahar of Amu Oriental Rugs in Mill Village for the Sudbury Historical Society at the Goodnow Library on January 7, 2001. The program also features Sheila MacKinnon. The recording can be viewed on the Sudbury Historical Society YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QA14rL5WCiY Collection Sudbury Historical Society
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QA14rL5WCiY&t=6sThe Arabi is the third important sheep breed. It is found in nearly all Northern provinces, but also in Kabul and the provinces north of Kabul. The Arabi is a large-farmed sheep of 45-50 Kg body weight with a good mutton conformation and fattening ability. This is the meaty type breed with short coarse wool and fatty rump with no tail. The majority of Arabi sheep are black with a characteristic white stripe along the forehead but brown and white Arabi also occur. The greasy fleece weigh of this sheep is 1.2-1.7 Kg. But the wool of the Arabi breed is of poor quality. The milk yield of this breed during 130-140 days of a lactation period is 45-55 Kg. The birth rate is 65-80 % with 0-2% twinning. The sex mature rate is 6-8 months.
The Karakul had the largest population than other breeds of sheep in our country (about 30% from the total sheep population is the Karakul sheep and produced 20 million astrakhan pelts per year) before war and five years drought among the sheep breeds and is kept in the Northern provinces from Badghis to Takhar, with the highest concentration in Balkh, Jawzjan and Faryab. The Karakul is a very hardy sheep which is well adapted to the dry and hot climate conditions of northern Afghanistan. They have big and long body, long legs, fallen pelvis, and long rump/fat-tail with the shape of S in the end, long and fallen hear with the color of black and gray are the main. Turkmen and Uzbek are the main Karakul breeders who often keep flocks of thousand ewes or more. The average live weigh ewes are 42-45 Kg (range 40-55 Kg) and that of rams 50-60 Kg (range 50-90 Kg). The lambing rate depends on the management and varies from 70-85 % and twinning rate is 5-8%. The milk yield during 120-130 days of lactation period ewes produce up to 40-45 Kg of milk. The karakul sheep are primarily kept for astrakhan pelt production. The wool of the adult ewes is usually dark grey and used locally for the production of the carpets.
The Ghaljai is the second most important sheep breed and is raised in the southern provinces of Ghazni, Paktia, Zabul and Kandahar. It is meaty and wooly type sheep with fat-tail. The Ghaljai has a medium body size and a body weight of ewes is 35- 45 kg and that of rams is 35-50 Kg. The fleece of the Ghaljai sheep is usually white but colored animals also occur. The wool is heterogeneous and fine. Crossing of this breed with Merinos rams have shown a good result. The Baluchi type of sheep is the result of breeding of Merinos with the Ghiljai sheep. The annual greasy fleece weigh of ewes is 1.5-2 Kg and that of rams is 2.5-3 Kg. The milk yield during 120-130 days of a lactation period is 35-45 Kg. The wool of this breed is of a mixed coarse-wool type. The lambing rate is 70-75 % and twinning rate is 0-2%.
The Ghaljai is the second most important sheep breed and is raised in the southern provinces of Ghazni, Paktia, Zabul and Kandahar. It is meaty and wooly type sheep with fat-tail. The Ghaljai has a medium body size and a body weight of ewes is 35- 45 kg and that of rams is 35-50 Kg. The fleece of the Ghaljai sheep is usually white but colored animals also occur. The wool is heterogeneous and fine. Crossing of this breed with Merinos rams have shown a good result. The Baluchi type of sheep is the result of breeding of Merinos with the Ghaljai sheep. The annual greasy fleece weigh of ewes is 1.5-2 Kg and that of rams is 2.5-3 Kg. The milk yield during 120-130 days of a lactation period is 35-45 Kg. The wool of this breed is of a mixed coarse-wool type. The lambing rate is 70-75 % and twinning rate is 0-2%.
The Baluchi breed is kept in the Nimroz province and southern parts of Helmand and Kandahar and also exists in the neighbouring regions of Pakistan and Iran. Like the Kandahari it is well adapted to the arid range and desert areas and produces good quality carpet wool. The annual greasy fleece weight is 1.3-2 Kg. The Baluchi is a medium-sized sheep with average body weight of 34-36 Kg. This is the meaty and wooly type breed The birth rate of this breed is 60-75 % with 0-I % twinning. The milk yield during 120-130 days of a lactation period is 35-40 Kg.
The Hazaragie breed is kept in the mountainous region of central Afghanistan. The region is characterized by good summer pastures but a scarcity of feed during winter when sheep have to be kept inside. The Hazaragie sheep is of small to medium size and the body weights of ewes is reported to be 28-35 Kg. The color of the wool is reddish-brown which reduces its value for carpet manufacture. The smallest breed, both by size and population is the Gadik which is being kept in Badakhshan and parts of the eastern ( Noristan and Kunar) mountains. Ewes of the Gadik breed have a body weight of 25-28 Kg, but are said to produce two lambing per year ( Bouy and Dasniere,1994). The Gadik produces the finest among the Afghan wools. The annual greasy fleece weight is 1-1.8 Kg. The milk yield during 120-130 days of a lactation period is 30-35 Kg. The birth rate of this breed is 65-75 % with 0-1% twinning. In the 1950,s different type of Merino breeds were imported and crossbreeding with local sheep initiated on some state farms ( Yalcin, 1979), but apparently no efforts were made to test those breeds under field conditions.
The Turki sheep is meaty and fat-tail of sheep. It is tall size with thin and long legs, long and deep head, the nose bone is bulgy, the hear are long and in some of them are short, thick skin, thick and short wool with brown color and high percentage of fat. This breed is very resistance and can live in dessert areas with poor quality feed. This breed is mainly raised in the northeastern provinces of Parwan, Kapisa, Badakhshan, Takhar, Kunduz and Baghlan. The Turki has a brown coat which resembles that of wild sheep and the small amount of poor quality wool has no commercial value. The annual greasy fleece weight is o.8-1.0 Kg. It has a large body size and body weight of 50-55 Kg. The Turki is a meat type sheep with good mutton conformation. Large numbers of the breed have been taken by refugees to Pakistan where it is known under the name of Afghani. The total production of milk yield in one lactation period (130-140 days) is 55-65 Kg. The lambing rate is 75-80% with 8-10% twinning. There is a white colored breed of medium-size in the western provinces which is called Kandahari, Farahi or Herati according to the provinces of origin. The annual greasy fleece weight is 1.2-1.6 Kg. The total milk yield during 120-130 days of a lactation period is 35-40 Kg. The lambing rate of this breed is 65-75 % with 0-2 % twinning. This breed is said to be a good forager and makes efficient use of poor rangelands and desert-like areas. The body weight of ewes is in the range of 40-60 Kg and the wool is among the best qualities for carpet production in Afghanistan. It seems that this breed identical with the Gadic breed reported by McArthur (1980). McArthur surveyed sixteen flocks in different areas of Herat province and found weaning rates of about 75 percent, a growth rate until eight months of age of 136 gram for male lambs and a wool production of 1.7 Kg/ewe.
The Karakul had the largest population than other breeds of sheep in our country (about 30% from the total sheep population is the Karakul sheep and produced 20 million astrakhan pelts per year) before war and five years drought among the sheep breeds and is kept in the Northern provinces from Badghis to Takhar, with the highest concentration in Balkh, Jawzjan and Faryab. The Karakul is a very hardy sheep which is well adapted to the dry and hot climate conditions of northern Afghanistan. They have big and long body, long legs, fallen pelvis, and long rump/fat-tail with the shape of S in the end, long and fallen hear with the color of black and gray are the main. Turkmen and Uzbek are the main Karakul breeders who often keep flocks of thousand ewes or more. The average live weigh ewes are 42-45 Kg (range 40-55 Kg) and that of rams 50-60 Kg (range 50-90 Kg). The lambing rate depends on the management and varies from 70-85 % and twinning rate is 5-8%. The milk yield during 120-130 days of lactation period ewes produce up to 40-45 Kg of milk. The karakul sheep are primarily kept for astrakhan pelt production. The wool of the adult ewes is usually dark grey and used locally for the production of the carpets.
The Turki sheep is meaty and fat-tail of sheep. It is tall size with thin and long legs, long and deep head, the nose bone is bulgy, the hear are long and in some of them are short, thick skin, thick and short wool with brown color and high percentage of fat. This breed is very resistance and can live in dessert areas with poor quality feed. This breed is mainly raised in the northeastern provinces of Parwan, Kapisa, Badakhshan, Takhar, Kunduz and Baghlan. The Turki has a brown coat which resembles that of wild sheep and the small amount of poor quality wool has no commercial value. The annual greasy fleece weight is o.8-1.0 Kg. It has a large body size and body weight of 50-55 Kg. The Turki is a meat type sheep with good mutton conformation. Large numbers of the breed have been taken by refugees to Pakistan where it is known under the name of Afghani. The total production of milk yield in one lactation period (130-140 days) is 55-65 Kg. The lambing rate is 75-80% with 8-10% twinning. There is a white colored breed of medium-size in the western provinces which is called Kandahari, Farahi or Herati according to the provinces of origin. The annual greasy fleece weight is 1.2-1.6 Kg. The total milk yield during 120-130 days of a lactation period is 35-40 Kg. The lambing rate of this breed is 65-75 % with 0-2 % twinning. This breed is said to be a good forager and makes efficient use of poor rangelands and desert-like areas. The body weight of ewes is in the range of 40-60 Kg and the wool is among the best qualities for carpet production in Afghanistan. It seems that this breed identical with the Gadic breed reported by McArthur (1980). McArthur surveyed sixteen flocks in different areas of Herat province and found weaning rates of about 75 percent, a growth rate until eight months of age of 136 gram for male lambs and a wool production of 1.7 Kg/ewe.
Alex and his father examining Madder Roots (Rubia tinctorum, the rose madder or common madder or dyer's madder, is a herbaceous perennial plant species belonging to the bedstraw and coffee family Rubiaceae) the plant that's use to get red/rust colors
http://www.wildcolours.co.uk/html/madder.htmlDrawing the motifs is one thing, but the coloring is quite another. Very often, our customers ask, use certain color for the field and certain color for main border color. You chose other appropriate colors.. It's the other colors that make the details and the devil is in details.
