Kochtillo headpiece, 1920.

Republican Historical, Regional and

Fine Arts Museum, Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

 

 

Woodcarving and painted wood

 

Numerous architectural monuments of the early and late Middle Ages witness the rich and ancient traditions of woodcutting. The woodcutters who worked on the architectural interiors would simultaneously produce practical objects. The wood of linen chests, cradles, cupboards, bookstands, caskets, and low tables was adorned with carved designs. The wooden musical instruments were also richly decorated. In the second half of the 19th century many decorative polyhedral tables and stools appeared for the European population living in the towns of Central Asia. In the late 19th through the early 20th century, woodcutting schools opened in Khiva, Bukhara, Samarkand, Kokand, and Khujand. Even today they still have a good reputation. In order to decorate practical wooden objects, the craftsmen used two methods: simple hollow ornamentation technique or woodcutting called “bottomless”.

 

In the mountainous regions of Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Karakalpakstan, woodcutters refined the decoration of clogs, crockery, chests, and other wooden objects. The decoration of these pieces of work were composed of designs with triangles, hooks, and other geometrical elements, creating simple adornment, devoid of artifice and sometimes archaic. The aim was to turn to good account the natural beauty of wood. The technique of “bottomless” woodcutting was only used by professional woodcutters. It was a highly developed urban craft. The basis of these ornaments consisted of islimis, the supple and dynamic entanglement of foliage strewn with buds, flowers, and leaves, and with pargori, austere, and static geometrical designs traced with a pair of compasses and a ruler.

 

The painting of wood, like woodcutting used for interior decoration since remote times, was also used for the adornment of practical objects. Complex floral and geometrical designs were applied on the finished surface of small tables, chests, small boxes, turntables, and other objects. Then the design was painted with a very thin brush, using mineral or plant colours embellished with bronze or silver. Preferred colours were red, green, and blue.