Posted on 08/01/2007 1:40:25 AM PDT by familyop
Iran on Tuesday unveiled what it said was the world's largest handwoven carpet, worth 5.8 million dollars and larger than a football pitch, to be laid out in a United Arab Emirates mosque.
The carpet, adorned with green and cream colours, was made in 18 months from 38 tonnes of wool and cotton by 1,200 weavers in three villages in northeastern Iran, said the head of Iran's state carpet company, Jalaleddin Bassam.
It is to be spread out in the mosque in UAE capital Abu Dhabi that bears the name of UAE president and founder Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahayan.
The carpet, measuring 5,625 square metres (60,546 square feet), was made up of nine pieces which will be stitched together in the UAE to cover the floor of the central praying area of the massive mosque.
There are 2.2 billion knots in the carpet, which was made with the best wool from the southern Iranian town of Sirjan and from New Zealand in 25 colours using 20 different natural dyes, Bassam said.
The dominantly green and cream carpet bears the classic Persian motifs of scrolling vine networks and five medallions-symmetrical centre pieces-which alone measure seven metres (23 feet) to 20 metres (66 feet) wide.
It was rolled out for the first time in Tehran's vast open air prayer ground, the Mosalla, where photographers had to board helicopters for a full view and onlookers appeared as matchsticks on the immensity of the carpet.
Several trucks were needed to take the carpet for the showing in Tehran while it will go to the United Arab Emirates by air in two separate planeloads.
The 747 version of the Iranian flying carpet.
I’m glad we didn’t see any pics of Rosie here.
It too, will soon smell like sweaty, stinky feet like the carpets in all Mosques do.
It is quite a stunning piece of architecture, and Sultan Ahmed intended it to be, as he built it right across the street from the Hagia Sophia - at that time, Christianity's largest cathedral. He could not however, exceed nor even match the size of the dome of the Hagia Sofia, so made the building more ornate and larger in other areas.
After visiting the Hagia Sofia, I walked across to see the Blue Mosque. It was right after Friday prayers when some 7000 men had just finished praying within.
Of course, they all had to take off their shoes, and then walk across the carpet that covered the entire floor... it actually looked like thousands of tiny carpets sewn together, as it is composed of squares for each praying person to occupy as his prayer space. Each square acts as an individual's prayer mat, if you will.
So you have 7000 people removing their shoes and grinding their sweaty stinky socks into this cheap polyester rug and then leaving.
The stink of smelly feet was absolutely overpowering and unmistakeable. They had all the doors and windows in the place wide open, even though it was a chilly April day - to no avail. It stunk like hell.
The smell of Islam.
Muslim technology on the march!
Don’t they run vacuums over those rugs once in a while? Carpet shampoo would do wonders to the odors ... or are they unfamiliar with the concept??
Servicemaster...
NOW YOU ALL SEE Wise Guys!
THAT is what they have been building all this time in secrecy in those gaint factories and such!
They wanted it to be a SURPRISE for the world! THAT is why they had to bury their “Carpet Factory” Way Under ground with mounds of dirt over it! and kick the U.N. Weapons inspectors out!
So big deal!!; it gave off a slight RADIOACTION Level warning!ALL CARPETS made over Weapon-Grade producing reactors ALWAYS gave off radiation!-But the Mullahs did say that it is an old family trick on how to make the colors look so life like!
(And YOU all thought they’d give their ancient Carpet-Making Information to our enemies!!)
WHO would need a Nuclear Bomb when all you need to do is drop a country-size , heavy carpet over someone you hate!?
Airborne
(You Radical, Evil, Non-Tolerant Conservatives ALWAYS think the Worse of everyone!..by the way; Iran got the design for the carpet from Cuba and other Bits & Pieces from LEAKED info from the New York Slimes!!
It must be said, a lot of churches stink too.
We should unroll a different kind of carpet on Iran.
Carpet Bombing?
What about the footbaths they are yelling about in the US? Or is that only for where the infidels have to pay for them?
I don't know.
But if you think about it, they must pray 5 times per day. Five times each day, thousands of people take off their shoes and grind their smelly feet into the cheap carpet.
Ain't no soap this side of hell that can wash away that stinkfoot smell.
Now, many mosques have a place for people to wash their feet. But they don't always include soap, and the washing is more ritualistic than sanitary, so merely allows the soggy sweaty to run off the feet and into the carpet even better.
Don't take my word for it, go into the Sultan Ahmed Mosque (also known as "The Blue Mosque") in Istanbul after Friday prayers and see (smell) for yourself.
are you halal?
i thought kuffir (infidels) were prohibited from mosques.
It appeared to be indoor-outdoor carpet. Maybe my sense of art wasn’t functional that day, but the architecture wasn’t impressive nor the decorations. It doesn’t do to look too closely at that stuff.
Nope.
I'm an infidel.
I throw Korans into toilets at absolutely every opportunity.
I have been inside of two Mosques in my life that I can remember - both times, as a tourist.
1.) The Alabaster Mosque in Cairo, Egypt
2.) The Blue Mosque in Istanbul
I may have been inside another one in Egypt, but can't recall, as it was quite long ago. I was in Israel and went to the "Dome of the Rock" but cannot recall going inside.
Anyway, the Alabaster Mosque in Cairo and the Blue Mosque in Istanbul both allow tourists to go inside. They have a roped off area where you can saunter through and see the entire inside. You cannot walk on the prayer mats (stinky carpets).
I have to say, that the Alabaster Mosque and the Blue Mosque are two impressive buildings.
The single most impressive religious building to me though, is the yet unfinished Catedra de la Sacra Familia in Barcelona, Spain - designed by Gaudi. It is just stunning.
its beyond stunning. why, its almost ... gaudi (couldn’t resist!)
oct 05, no infidels allowed on temple mount (rama-lama-ding-dong going on.)
have seen the mezqita in cordoba - loved it. alhambra in granada also.
nowadays, i wouldn’t allow MYSELF to go in a mosque - stirrin up trouble, prayin to the One true God, not allah and all that.
i have a koran @ home if yer gettin low on throwin stock. it was worth every penny (www.freekoran.com)
i find most ancient (and many modern) Christian churches much more architecturally complex and appealing, at least externally.
Not like feet.
The Catholic Cathedrals of Europe often smell like candles, incense and sometimes flowers.
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