European Heritage Days 2022

The Museum of the Textile Industry will mark the European Heritage Days 2022 with a presentation of Dora Kurshumova’s new book “Kotel Carpets – Stronger Than Time,” published earlier this year.

European Heritage Days are a large-scale cultural initiative that began in 1985. During the events, easy and broad access is provided to important monuments of our shared cultural heritage, knowledge is exchanged, and a variety of activities are organized to preserve and promote Europe’s cultural wealth.

The art of handwoven carpets is an important part of the Bulgarian textile tradition. These testimonies of our cultural heritage “tell stories”; they reflect the knowledge and wisdom of the local community, the preserved experience of the past, and an understanding of the world and philosophy of life.

The book “Kotel Carpets – Stronger Than Time” is a richly illustrated, large-format edition. In nearly 200 pages, Dora Kurshumova shares her research and explorations, based on the study of authentic samples, personal meetings with carpet weavers, the search for documentary sources, and more. Here, historical facts, technological features, and semantic content are presented as different perspectives, illustrated by the author with numerous visual examples.

The book presentation will be accompanied by a video screening of models of Kotel carpets.