Handcrafts

Like any other country, Kazakhstan has its signature crafts that have been creating and developing over the centuries. Kazakh nomads needed to create utensils that would fit their way of life. The most striking example is a yurt, a functional nomadic home. To assemble all parts of the yurt, qualifications and skills were required.

Parts of the yurt (shanyrak, kerege, uyk, esik) were created from high-quality materials with precise mathematical calculations; this was the male part of the work. The women, on the other hand, were engaged in the creation of the “facing” of the yurt - made from camel felt, which kept warmth in the yurt in winter and did not overheat the house from the inside in summer.

Besides, felt was used to create comfort inside the house itself: felt carpets.

All household utensils were also created from wood - this was practical for nomads, as the earthenware could break during wanderings. Also, the craftsmen made dishes from animal skins - they kept the temperature, which also made life easier in the steppe.

Blacksmith production was used to create harness elements, as well as women's jewellery. The metal for creating goods was mainly imported. Jewellery art (zergerlik) was also developed on the territory of Kazakhstan. Jewellery was created from silver, but they were very unique: thanks to unusual shapes and patterns.

Kazakh masters decorated most of their goods with unusual folk patterns, which gave a special charm to the final product. Women decorated national clothes with patterns, as well as their felt products for the home.

In general, production in Kazakhstan was as much environmentally friendly and cost-effective as possible: clothes were sewn from animal skins and wool and household utensils (carpets, felt for yurts) were created, handles for knives were created from various animal bones, and clothes, shoes and heat-resistant covers for utensils.