The town of Chiprovtsi is located in Northwestern Bulgaria. The findings found near the city indicate that this area was inhabited from the time of The Thracians. During the Roman era, the area was one of the most important gold-mining areas in the Balkans. From the Roman name for copper - cuprum, comes the name of the settlement, which was originally Kiprovets, then Chiporovtsi and finally today's Chiprovtsi. Carpet weaving was greatly developed in the 19th century. The famous Chipro carpet is made by hand, on a vertical loom, from pure wool. The beautiful nature, the mysterious past make the village a desirable tourist destination. Near Chiprovtsi is the Chiprov Waterfall, the Kaleto area, and the Chiprov Monastery.
The Chiprovsky carpet–phenomenon on the creative one genius
A lot has been written about it, but there is still much to be written about its creation, development and artistic qualities, because throughout the time since its creation, it has developed, its craftsmanship has increased, and today's goblets (according to the technology of the Chipro carpet ) are ranked among the artistic productions. Chiprov carpets were born in the first half of the 18th century - after the uprising. / towards the middle of this century, descendants who survived the uprising returned to the place of the burnt settlements, who together sought to organize their livelihood. They start their lives here under difficult conditions. They began to engage in agriculture and animal husbandry. The conditions allowed for the cultivation of mainly small livestock - sheep, from which they obtained wool, milk and meat. The resulting high-quality wool is processed and used to make fabrics for clothing, bedding and carpets.
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Carpet weaving becomes a major livelihood. Each house has one or two looms. From Chiprovtsi, carpet making moves to Kopilovtsi, Zhelezna, Vlaško selo (Martinovo) and Glavanovtsi. It differs from the carpets produced in the Pirot Region and Kotel. The Chiprov carpet has its own architectural construction with a border of two frames and a field, hinted at in the first specimen. It has a smooth carpet fabric, with two faces, with a classic architectural construction, with a different compositional layout of the drawing. The Chiprov carpet is resistant to foreign influences, which is why it has survived to this day. Unique and eternal, woven into the national culture of Bulgaria. Received world recognition at a fair in Pirot, Eski-Jumaia (Trade).
Chiprov carpets participate in world exhibitions. At the first exhibition in Plovdiv in 1892, Mincho Popov, a kilimar from Chiprovtsi, received a silver medal, and in 1894, a diploma and a gold medal. In 1907, Michalko D. Minkin received a diploma and a gold medal at the exhibition in London. Marko Tanev and Co. from the village of Zelezna also received a diploma and a gold medal.
