Anatolian rug Anatolian rug Anatolian rug is a term of convenience, commonly used today to denote rugs and carpets woven in Anatolia (or Asia minor) and its adjacent regions. Geographically, its area of production can be compared to the territories which were historically dominated by the Ottoman Empire. It denotes a knotted, pile-woven floor or wall covering which is produced for home use, local sale, and export. Together with the flat-woven kilim, Anatolian rugs represent an essential part of the regional culture, which is officially understood as the Culture of Turkey today, and derives from the ethnic, religious and cultural pluralism of
Anatolian rug in Anatolia itself. The most important cultural influences came from the Chinese culture, and from Islam. Carpets from the Bergama and Konya areas are considered as most closely related to earlier Anatolian rugs, and their significance in the history of the art is now better understood. The early history of the Turkic peoples in Central Asia is closely related to China. Contacts between Turks and China are documented since the early Han dynasty. In his essay on centralized designs, Thompson relates the central medallion pattern, frequently found in Anatolian rugs to the "lotus pedestal" and "cloud collar (yun chien)" motifs,