Tours in Margilan.

"If a worker, by the sweat of his face
Mining bread, did not acquire anything -
Why should he bow to nothingness
Or even to someone who is not worse than him?"

Omar Khayyam Giyasaddin Obul-Faht ibn Ibrahim.

Excursions to the museums of Margilan.

The house-workshop of the famous weaver Turgunbai Mirzaakhmedov is located in the Fergana Valley, in the city of Margilan. Margilan is famous for weavers dynasties. One of them is the Mirzaakhmedov family, whose head of the family, Turgunbai, is the leading master.
Turgunbay Mirzaahmedov was born in 1944 in the family of a hereditary master. Tugrunbay-aka was at the forefront of creating the remarkable and only Central Asia hand weaving factory "Yodgorlik", where he developed more than a hundred different patterns of fabrics.
Turgunbai Mirzaahmedov is not only a talented master, he is also a person who is ailing for the preservation and revival of the traditions of hand weaving. He restored the production of such silk fabrics as shoy, adras, bekasab, banoras, which ceased to weave by 1950 - 60 years.
The manufacture of such fabrics is a long, laborious and very laborious work. It includes 38 stages. Thanks to folk artists like Turgunbay Mirzaakhmedov, this process and technology have been preserved and continue to delight connoisseurs.
Turgunbai Mirzaahmedov is the first master of Uzbekistan who received a UNESCO certificate for his contribution to the preservation and development of craft traditions. Master Turgunbay Mirzaahmedov passed on his skills and taught the craft to his son Rasul, who also, like his father, takes care of the heritage of the past and skillfully creates beautiful silk and semi-silk fabrics. Every year, father and son master more and more new color combinations and patterns, adding them to the existing stock of images.
Rasul Mirzaahmedov in his work went even further than his father and in the late 90s began work on restoring the traditions of a unique type of fabric called "ala-bakhmal", which ceased to be made about a century ago. This is a special kind of "ikata", used only for festive expensive clothes.
A rare instance of “Ali-bakhmal” with a length of more than 6 meters in length is in the collection of the famous collector Guido Goldman. This cut is a pattern of alternating stripes of blue and white. “Ala-bakhmal” was produced only in Bukhara, therefore, clothing made from this fabric was considered very prestigious throughout Central Asia.
Ala-bahmal was produced for a very short period of time, from about 1860 to 1910. Fortunately, the seemingly rare species of fabric that had disappeared forever has now been revived again, thanks to the hands of Rasul Mirzaakhmedov, a master who sincerely wants to show the world the refined creations of the past.
This person is professionally skilled in hand weaving, the master of the seventh generation of weavers. The fabrics woven by him are truly the best samples of national Uzbek fabrics. Tugrunbai was at the forefront of creating the only Yodgorlik hand weaving factory in Central Asia, where he developed more than a hundred different patterns of fabrics.
Master Turgunbay Mirzaahmedov handed over his craft skills to his son Rasul, who also, like his father, takes care of the heritage of the past and skillfully creates beautiful silk and semi-silk fabrics. When visiting the workshop, you can not only enjoy the beauty of the unique silk creations of the Mirzaakhmedov family and watch the fabric manufacturing process, but also taste the Uzbek national cuisine in a warm home environment.
The joyful hosts will lay a huge table for their guests, replete with the gifts of the rich land of the Fergana Valley.

Authority:
"Fergana city and legends" tourist guide to Fergana.