The walls of this factory in the northeastern part of the Egyptian capital bespeak history as well as art.
Sitting inside the rooms encompassed by these walls are people who spend their lives stitching together designs that become art. When the handiworks are finished, the public will call these artworks "carpets."
Groups of five or six weavers sit in each room, use their hands and fingers and work knot by knot to complete the patterns printed on paper in front of them.
These workers spend months, sometimes years, to complete the patterns and produce knotted pieces that go into local and international markets and rivet everyone’s attention. However, these carpets can be possessed only by those who are sufficiently affluent to afford them.
Kattan Factory is probably the only remaining center for the production of handmade carpets in the Egyptian capital. The factory takes upon itself the mission of preserving the handmade carpet industry which is close to extinction. As it protects the industry, the factory produces carpets that are proving to be a strong rival to market competitors, including the famed Persian carpets and rugs.
"Our products are a strong competitor to Persian carpets, even though producers like us do not receive state support as Iranian manufacturers do," Mohamed al-Kattan, the current owner of the factory and a grandson of its founder, told Majalla.
Rich history
Behind the unique products of Kattan Factory are an extensive history and a rich background.
The factory was founded in 1930 by Ahmed al-Kattan, a retired schoolteacher who wanted to make the best of his time after retirement.
Ahmed bought an old palace in Kobri al-Qoba, a district full of palaces and villas in the northeastern part of the Egyptian capital. He restored the palace and then turned it into his desired carpet factory.
However, he did not have enough trained workers to run the factory and produce the first carpet. Only a few people he knew were familiar with the hand-knotting of carpets as a profession.
Ahmed decided to turn part of the palace into a school where he taught his prospective workers the art of carpet making.
Until this day, the school continues teaching this art to one generation after another and keeps the factory operating.
Those receiving training in the school use their fingers in knotting the finest carpets that draw to the factory all types of clients, from the most influential to the richest.
King Farouk of Egypt (1936 – 1952) was a client of the factory. Almost all Egyptian state agencies are also in the list of customers. In the same list are also Egypt's embassies abroad and foreign embassies in Cairo.
King Farouk once made a special order from the factory. He wanted Mohamed's grandfather to make a 5-Egyptian-pound-shaped carpet for him, and the factory manufactured this especially for the monarch.
"We succeeded in attracting all these clients to us by the unique nature of our products," Mohamed said.
Dying industry
Mohamed and co-workers brave the waves of extinction.
Their factory went through a series of tough times in the past, but never as tough as the present. The factory bore witness to World War II, the 1952 revolution against King Farouk, and Egypt's war against Israel for the liberation of Sinai in 1973.
Nonetheless, Covid-19 seems to be insurmountable. The pandemic is reordering the priorities of people and consequently influencing the sales of the factory.
"Handmade carpets are expensive, but now few people are ready to put that much money into the purchase of carpets with the pandemic threatening everyone's life," Mohamed said.
The lack of trained labor is another problem facing Kattan Factory. Carpet making by hand is a profession that has to be learned by practice.
"You cannot learn this profession by reading about it in the books," Mohamed said. "You have to practice in order to master it."
Serious bid
The Egyptian government is trying to prevent artisanal handicrafts from dying by giving craftsman access to financing.
The curtains have just come down on a major fair for handicrafts in Cairo. The fair brought together hundreds of craftsmen who paraded thousands of products that took a lot of sweat and time to make.
It was one of a series of events organized by the government to promote handicrafts and turn them into a tool for job creation.
The government revealed recently that it has a plan for increasing handicraft exports by helping local craftsmen improve their production and reach foreign markets.
Egyptian handicraft exports amounted to $208 million in 2020 according to the Egyptian government.
The government says it wants to – at least – double this export value in 2021.
Economists say this goal is very easy, thanks to the quality of handmade products in this country.
"Egypt has an extensive history of traditional crafts," said Yumn al-Hamaki, an economics professor at Cairo University. "This qualifies our national crafts for competition around the world," she told Majalla.
Competing with giants
Industrial centers like Kattan Factory stand to benefit from the government's plan to support the handicrafts.
The products of the factory have already made their presence felt in the international market.
Mohamed and co-weavers at the factory participate in international exhibitions, especially in Europe and the United States where they display their unique products.
The same products are outmatching similar products from other countries, including Iran whose handmade carpets and rugs enjoy an international reputation.
Mohamed remembers when he participated in a fair in the Saudi port city of Jeddah a few years ago.
After looking at and examining the carpets, some of the fair's visitors could not believe that they were made in Egypt.
"They were surprised to know this, not knowing that handmade carpet making is a very advanced industry in Egypt," Mohamed said.
Despite difficulties, Mohamed and co-weavers say they will keep working to preserve the handmade carpet industry and prevent it from dying.
"This industry must be protected at any price," Mohamed said. "It is an art that should never die."
