Shyrdak is a felt carpet, one of the most complex in its technique for making products from felt among the Kyrgyz.

For the Kirghiz, shirdaks, along with kiiz, were essential items in everyday life. They were laid on the floor or on the grass. Recently, small shyrdaks have been very popular among foreign tourists.

The usual size of a shirdak is 2 × 4 m. It consists of a felt base and skillfully cut pieces of colored felt sewn to it, which are a kind of ornament. Parts of the felt are connected with special stitches.

Ornaments are stylized images of some parts of animals: the tail of a dog, the horns of mountain goats, the claws of birds, and so on, which in turn are special signs that have a certain meaning and significance.

The main color combinations used in the manufacture of shyrdak are: red and white, red and blue, red, white and brown. Each shyrdak should end at the edges with a black and white pair of flowers (they symbolize the snow-capped peaks of the Kyrgyz mountains). Previously, only natural paints were used (madder root, indigo, wasparak (larkspur)). Modern craftswomen dye wool with aniline dyes.

In 2012, the Kyrgyz traditional art of making felt carpets shyrdak and ala-kiyiz was inscribed on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage

The final phase of making shirdak traditionally takes place in winter. In general, the whole process takes place throughout the year: in the spring, wool is sheared, then it is washed, dried, ruffled, dyed, fluffed, and then, with the help of boiling water, soap and chia (chii - reed mat), kiiz is felt - a felt carpet, in this case one color.

The shirdak ornament is dominated by two colors. Two layers of felt of different colors are superimposed on each other, a pattern is applied, the ornament is cut simultaneously in two layers with a sharp instrument. Then cut out parts of different colors are connected together and sewn to each other with special seams. Thus, from the prepared materials, two identical patterns are obtained at once. The difference between them is small. For example, if a pair of colors white and brown is used, then in one drawing we will see a brown ornament on a white background, and in the second - a white ornament on a brown background. These two ornaments are symmetrically superimposed on one thick felt base and a shirdak is obtained. If the ornamental blanks are in full size, then two similar shirdaks are made at once.

Price: from 100$