A wonderful 1920's pictorial Khotan vintage rug depicting Buddhist symbols.Now in Uzbekistan, Samarkand was once the gateway to China. It was one of the principal cities, if not the very pivot of the Silk Route. The principal production areas were Khotan and Yarkand and this whole area of East Turkistan produces very distinctive styles the most common design is the pomegranate tree stemming from a vase, an ancient symbol of fertility in the Far East.