Carpets, mostly in deep red color, and featuring a repeated motif known as a Gul means the flower, are a great source of pride to the Turkmen. They were among the most precious possessions of Turkmen nomads, the walls and floors of whose yurts were decorated with carpets. Turkmenistan celebrates an annual Carpet Day, and the national flag incorporates the flower typical of carpets from each of the country’s five regions.

The flower is, in effect, an emblem of the tribe. There is much debate as to the meaning of each of the patterns. If you visit Ashgabat Carpet muses, the guides will explain to you the very everything about Turkmen carpets. For instance, the flower characteristics of the Tekke tribe are divided into four parts to represent the seasons, its alternating white and dark colors symbolizing day and night. 

Within each of the four parts, the three designs resembling birds’ feet may each represent a month, which makes the whole design a kind of calendar flower. The four colors used in the making of the carpet – orange, white, red, and black – are said to represent the elements, respectively, of earth, air, fire, and water. The guides identify in the flower of the Yomud tribe, which occupies the Caspian shores of western Turkmenistan, many marine-related items. Thus the elongated shape of the flower is said to represent a boat, or possibly a fish, and the design features repeated anchor shapes. Around the edges of Yomud carpets may be identified a pattern resembling seashells intertwined with seaweed.