Our driver, who toured us through the High Atlas Mountains around Ouarzazate planned to take us through the Draa Valley to the Zagora and the beginning of the Sahara Desert, so we could ride the dromedary camels in the dunes there. The pretext of our stop at his bosses’ carpet shop, was that we needed to pick up some blue Berber turbans to protect us from the sun, wind, and sand. Henry and I have been through this before, yet accepted our fate of learning more about the carpets from a real expert, Mohammed Bougafer, who could not have been nicer. His family, 72 in number, has been trading for generations with the nomadic tribes who live in the Sahara desert. They acquire these handmade carpets and jewelry as payment in trade for supplying the tribes with staples they could not live without. With camel trains penetrating deep into the  Sahara Desert, they provide time and place utility for staples such as sugar, flour, and oil for cooking.  From an educational standpoint, we were taught the difference amongst carpets representing five tribes: Arabic, Bedouin, Berber, Hahratine , and Touareg. The details follow:

•Arabic: Fine, knotted carpets of wool with abstract patterns, often representing the gardens of paradise of Allah. There are no representations of man or animal in these carpets.

•Bedouin: Woven, embroidered, and knotted carpets with side fringe. Bedouins are semi-nomadic people who spend the winter in the  Sahara and the summer in the mountains. The side fringes allow them to use their carpets as saddle blankets, tied with pockets to transport their worldly goods on camelback. They also weave kilim carpets without knots, pile, or embroidery. These flat carpets have no side fringes, and are not used for bags, but are more likely to decorate the walls of the tent, although some are used on the floors. The designs of the Bedouin kilim include the family symbol, the tree of life, and fatima’s hand.

•Berber: A distinctive, knotted carpet in a solid color, often white. These people live in villages, making these heavy carpets with abstracted symbols. The tightly knotted carpets can be flipped to reveal the flat side during the summer months.

•Haratine: This tribe lives in southern Morocco, is not nomadic, and  became farmers. Most of this tribe originated from Mali and Mauritania, and many were slaves from the Sudan or Senegal. The carpets are brightly colored with dazzling patterns, typical of southern Africa. The green which is used in these carpets is dyed using the alfalfa plant,the purple comes from the scheriha plant.

•Twarweg: The “blue” tribe, weave carpets of 50% silk and 50% camel hair. As in most carpets, the top or beginning of the carpet is without fringe, woven in the manner of writing a story, the ending has fringe. The carpets are usually blue with red or blue with black, using natural dyes such as henna for the red, indigo for the blue, manganese for the black, and saffron for the yellow. Symbols include the family symbol, a signature woven into the carpet, an abstract symbol representing the eye for good luck, and a triangular shape representing the tent.  The cross found on the carpets, represents the southern cross which guides the night traveler across the desert. We also saw another style of this tribe’s carpets, one made of 100% silk using saffron and manganese died fibers. There are few symbols on this carpet as it is used as a wall hanging to decorate the interior of the tents.

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PHOTOS: Left Column: 1. The interior of Maison Bougafer*, Mohammed’s original store where we stopped in Ouarzazate. He has since opened a new store, captioned in the heading of this page. 2. A knotted Arab rug in an abstract garden design. 3. The Twarweg (blue) tribal carpet of knotted, woven, and embroidered design. The crosses symbolize the southern cross as navigating constellation across the night sky of the Sahara.  4. A Berber carpet in white with black abstract symbols. 5. Detail showing one of the Berber symbols on the flip side, or summer side of the carpet. 6. Haratine carpet showing the dazzling colors and abstract design. Light green and purple threads are woven into this carpet. Center, Top: Mohammed Bougafer in his shop, surrounded by carpets, pierced lamps, and jewels which his family traded with Moroccan tribes. Center, Middle: A beautiful blue carpet from an animist tribe. The design is similar to the Arabic carpet, but it is not Arabic because it includes symbols of man, and beasts. Center, Bottom:  Example of some of the jewelry in the Maison Saharienne shop. This is an antique piece made of silver, decorated with small antique Moroccan coins. Right Column: 1. The interior of Maison Bougafer in Ouarzazate. 2. A Twarweg carpet of 100% silk woven carpet using saffron and manganese as dyes. The symbol here is a signature representing a family symbol. This delicate carpet would have been used as a wall hanging only.  3. Kilim style Bedouin carpet showing symbols including the tree of life, landscape of dunes, woven carpets, and an abstracted flower design. 4. Fatima’s hand, the daughter of Mohammed, a symbol of grace and blessings. 5. Twareg carpet showing the family signature. 6. The knotted area of a Twareg carpet using knots, embroidery, and weaving. The border is a charming floral design.

1. *NOTE: Photos from: Maison Bougafer/Bougafer House, a family business, located on Route de Zagora in Ouarzazate.
   

JOURDAN ARPELLE-ZIEGLER                                        BACK TO MAP  PAGE