The Oriental Carpet Buyer

Spring appears to be a time of cleaning not only in American culture, but in traditional Persian culture as well. Nowruz, or the Iranian New Year, is celebrated on the first day of Spring. And carpet cleaning appears to be one of the traditional tasks along with planting vegetables and doing general house cleaning. To quote an essay by Iraj Bashiri that is cited by Wikipedia:

Preparation for the Nowruz begins early in March with sprouting of sabzeh (lentil, wheat, or barley seeds) and a thorough khane tekani (house cleaning). The former harks back to the agrarian background of the Iranian tribes that celebrated the main transitions in the climate that dictated the dynamics of their lives. The latter, which entails washing carpets, painting the house, and cleaning the yard and the attic, stems from the Zoroastrians’ preoccupation with cleanliness as a measure for keeping Evil away from the kingdom of Good.

If you want to know where to go for these kinds of things, just take a look at Barry O’Connell list of carpet cleaners.

And here is a little video for your viewing pleasure (seen on spongobongo.com):