Uzbekistan Industry

Legend has it that the powerful emir of Bukhara, desperate to have a son, came to this desert village hundreds of years ago to visit a woman famous for her fertility. The emir, following the superstition of the day, sat under her dress for several minutes, according to the legend. Returning to his walled city, he was soon blessed with a son he named Shakh Murad. The village took the same name, and when the prince became emir, he exempted the village from taxes forever.

Legend has it that the powerful emir of Bukhara, desperate to have a son, came to this desert village hundreds of years ago to visit a woman famous for her fertility. The emir, following the superstition of the day, sat under her dress for several minutes, according to the legend. Returning to his walled city, he was soon blessed with a son he named Shakh Murad. The village took the same name, and when the prince became emir, he exempted the village from taxes forever.

An Oriental carpet mogul from Afghanistan and a caravan of 40 expert weavers have made their way through the breathtaking Pamir Mountains to try to revive the all-but-forgotten ancient craft in the former Soviet Central Asian republics. Carpet weaving was a thriving home industry in many parts of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan before Soviet dictator Josef Stalin forced the nationalization of all industries and pushed the population into communal farms in the 1930s.

An Oriental carpet mogul from Afghanistan and a caravan of 40 expert weavers have made their way through the breathtaking Pamir Mountains to try to revive the all-but-forgotten ancient craft in the former Soviet Central Asian republics. Carpet weaving was a thriving home industry in many parts of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan before Soviet dictator Josef Stalin forced the nationalization of all industries and pushed the population into communal farms in the 1930s.