A Brief History of Magic Carpets
Long before anybody had even conceived of an aeroplane and long before carpet cleaning companies had been necessary, people spoke of magic carpets that could levitate and fly from place to place at great speeds. The legend of the magic carpet dates all the way back to ancient times and is still commonly referenced in popular culture today. In this article, we’ll take a look at a brief history of these fascinating floorings.
Magic carpets in eastern tradition
The biblical King Solomon was described as owning a magic carpet that measured 60 miles long and 60 miles wide and was capable of speeds that could transport him from Damascus (in Syria) to Medina (in Saudi Arabia) in only a day. The magic carpet travelled on the wind, which responded to Solomon’s commands to ensure the carpet always went to its correct destination. However, when Solomon exhibited pride, the carpet gave a shake and caused 40,000 men to fall to their deaths, and Solomon felt ashamed.
However, it was the popularity of medieval folk tale collection One Thousand and One Nights (more commonly known in English as Arabian Nights) which really brought magic carpets to the attention of a western audience. In these stories, an apparently worthless carpet from Tangu in Persia became Prince Housain’s Carpet. This, along with other elements of Arabian mythology such as genies and magic lamps, enchanted the West.
Magic carpets references in western culture
As a result of this enchantment, magic carpets were quickly absorbed into western popular culture, with many books, movies and video games referencing magic carpets. Some of these include:
In books:
- The 1889 fairytale Prince Prigio, where the hero receives a magic carpet as a christening gift.
- The 1971 novel Operation Chaos described an alternate America where flying carpets have the role of being the main mode of transport (along with brooms).
- The 1988 fantasy novel Sourcery features several characters that use magic carpets in order to escape.
- The 1989 novel Hyperion featured magic carpets as a mode of transportation known as Hawking mats.
- In the famous Japanese manga, Dragon Ball, the character of Mr. Popo rides a flying carpet.
- In the hugely successful Harry Potter series, magic carpets are commonly used by wizards in the east, but their use has been banned in the UK.
In film:
- The 1924 film The Thief of Bagdad, as well as its 1940 remake, both feature a magic carpet.
- In the 1992 film Aladdin, a flying carpet is in fact one of the characters with its own personality. Aladdin features many eastern legends, including both a genie and a magic lamp.
In games:
- The Nintendo game, Super Mario Bros. 2, features an enemy named Pidgit that rides on a magic carpet. After defeating Pidgit, the player can even ride the carpet, though it could probably use some carpet steam cleaning after such a battle!
- In MMORPG World of Warcraft, characters with high skills in tailoring can make a flying carpet and use it as a mount.
In popular culture:
- After WWII, Operation Magic Carpet was the name given to the effort to repatriate over eight million US military personnel.
- The 1955 Citroen DS automobile was described by journalists at the time as having magic-carpet-like qualities.
