Soviet chic or real benefit? Why housing in the USSR was lavishly decorated with carpets

The Soviet Union had many problems and few consumer goods. From here, strange by today's standards, habits were formed, such as storing crystal in cabinets, washing bags and stocking up on food for future use. But what about the carpets? Was there any practical benefit from them, or were they just some kind of indicator of well-being? Let's figure it out.

How carpets came to Russia

The tradition of decorating homes with carpets came from the east. The steppe nomads used them to insulate the walls and floors of their yurts. For them, it was a universal roll insulation, which at the same time served as a decorative item. It was very convenient for a nomadic lifestyle.

In Russia, carpets on floors and walls appeared in the 19th century. Then the oriental style came into vogue and in wealthy circles it was believed that at least one room in the house should be decorated with expensive carpets. In those days, the carpet became an obligatory attribute of luxury and one of the indicators of the high status of the owner of the house.

Gradually, oriental fashion began to move into the homes of ordinary people. But the carpet at that time was a very expensive thing and ordinary people had no idea to lay it on the floor. They were hung on the walls as decoration.

Carpets in the USSR

The boom in carpets in the USSR came in the sixties, when the mass construction of Khrushchevs began. Then there was a terrible deficit for almost all consumer goods. Nor were ordinary paper wallpapers available.

It was then that savvy Soviet people figured out that it was possible to hang carpets on the walls, because the fashion for this once existed. There is no need to glue wallpaper under the carpet, and this is one of the budget savings points. By the way, the wallpaper was not glued behind furniture, for example, behind a wall or a massive sideboard - they perfectly covered the wall with themselves.

But as you know, what two know, soon everyone will know. The fashion for carpets quickly spread to the private sector. A real hunt for carpets began. These items weren't stuck on store shelves; they were taken out for pull and for bribes.

The prices for these products of the textile industry were far from low. With an average salary of approximately 100 rubles, the price of carpets varied from 200 to 1000 rubles. The ceiling price is $ 1,000. rubles and more was in real woolen carpets produced in Central Asia.

Small comparison. A carpet from the Tsimlyansk factory, measuring 3 * 2 meters, cost 500 rubles. At that time, it was five average salaries. Imagine that today, with an average salary of 20 thousand rubles, you have to work for almost six months on just one carpet! During Soviet times, it was very expensive and showed the financial capabilities of the owner of the home.

Practical benefits of carpets in the home

As we already understood, a carpet is an indicator of the wealth of a Soviet person. But what is the practical use of this massive thing?

Carpet bereg wallpaper near the bed

When the bed is against the wall, the wallpaper just above the bed quickly deteriorates - it becomes greasy. And wallpaper with a similar pattern could not have been bought! So, the carpet or, in extreme cases, a bedspread hung by the bed, were taking care of the scarce wallpaper at that time.

Noise isolation

Khrushchevs were made as cheap as possible, in a modern way they were optimized. Due to the economy on everything, the walls of the apartments were thin, and the audibility was very good. A ringing alarm clock in one apartment could easily wake up tenants in the next one. The carpets on the walls served as good soundproofing.

Thermal insulation

A carpet is, in fact, an expensive colored insulation. Carpets were hung in the freezing corners of apartments and houses, laid on the floors in cold rooms. This helped save on heating and made the home a little warmer.

Ivan Komarov recalls:

“We had a large, long wagon-like house that was heated by two wood-burning stoves. My room was the farthest and the least warmth got there. The door had to be constantly kept open in order for the room to somehow warm up. In severe frosts in my room, frost crawled from under the floors, my feet froze from this, and steam came out of my mouth. Even the electric fireplace did not help! With this it was necessary to somehow fight and my mother decided to move all the carpets to my room. They covered the floors and hung the walls. One wall was "walled up" right with the window. And it worked, the room became warmer and even more comfortable! "

Carpet as a unit of account

Carpets in those days were given for birthdays and weddings, passed on by inheritance. They even gave bribes with this thing! It is a mistake to say that in the USSR the only bargaining chip was the “Liquid Ruble”. Small calculations were made in half liters, but a couple of carpets could be given for admission to college!

Do you have carpets in your house now? Write in the comments!

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