| Magic Carpet | |
|---|---|
 Riding a Flying Carpet, an 1880 painting by Viktor Vasnetsov | |
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Real Name |
Unknown |
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First Appearance |
World Mythology |
Origin[]
One of Vasnetsov's paintings of a flying carpet.
A magic carpet, also called a flying carpet, is a legendary carpet and common trope in fantasy fiction. It is typically used as a form of transportation and can quickly or instantaneously carry its user to their destination.
One of the stories in the One Thousand and One Nights relates how Prince Husain, the eldest son of Sultan of the Indies, travels to Bisnagar (Vijayanagara) in India and buys a magic carpet. This carpet is described as follows: "Whoever sitteth on this carpet and willeth in thought to be taken up and set down upon other site will, in the twinkling of an eye, be borne thither, be that place nearhand or distant many a day's journey and difficult to reach." The literary traditions of several other cultures also feature magical carpets, in most cases literally flying rather than instantly transporting their passengers from place to place.
King Solomon's carpet was reportedly made of green silk with a golden weft, sixty miles (97 km) long and sixty miles (97 km) wide: "when Solomon sat upon the carpet he was caught up by the wind, and sailed through the air so quickly that he breakfasted at Damascus and supped in Media." The wind followed Solomon's commands, and ensured the carpet would go to the proper destination; when Solomon was proud, for his greatness and many accomplishments, the carpet gave a shake and 40,000 fell to their deaths. The carpet was shielded from the sun by a canopy of birds.
In Shaikh Muhammad ibn Yahya al-Tadifi al-Hanbali's book of wonders, Qala'id-al-Jawahir ("Necklaces of Gems"), Shaikh Abdul-Qadir Gilani walks on the water of the River Tigris, then an enormous prayer rug (sajjada) appears in the sky above, "as if it were the flying carpet of Solomon".
In Russian folk tales, Baba Yaga can supply Ivan the Fool with a flying carpet or some other magical gifts (e.g. a ball that rolls in front of the hero showing him the way, or a towel that can turn into a bridge). Such gifts help the hero to find his way "beyond thrice-nine lands, in the thrice-ten kingdom".
In Mark Twain's "Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven", magic wishing carpets are used to instantaneously travel throughout Heaven.
In "traditional Chinese fantasy literature" from the late Qing dynasty and before, sentient flying carpets were thought to be "magical monsters" in the same category as lung, qilin, or clouds for heroes to traverse distances with.
In Taoism and Taoist art, flying carpets were used as poetic metaphors for the ability of flight xian had.
In Tibetan Tantric Buddhism, a paper carpet were thought to be able to fly for "adepts".
In Gullivar of Mars (a.k.a. Lieut. Gullivar Jones: His Vacation) by Edwin Lester Arnold, a magic carpet carries Lieutenant Jones to Mars.
In Ozma of Oz, a magic carpet protected users from dangers allowing Ozma and her party to cross the Shifting Sands that separate the Land of Ev from the Land of Oz.
Comic book characters such Miracle Man and the Phantom Sphinx among others used a magic carpet for transportation as well.
A. Bertram Chandler's novelette "The Magic, Magic Carpet" was the cover story for the October 1959 issue of Fantastic.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of Magic Carpets from before Janurary 1, 1929 are public domain in the US.
Some Notable Appearances are listed below:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- One Thousand and One Nights
- The Arabian Nights' Entertainment (1706–1721)
- Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven (1907-1908)
- The Phoenix and the Carpet (1904)
- Gullivar of Mars (1905)
- Ozma of Oz (1907)
- The Thief of Bagdad (novelization) (1924)
- Book of Brownies (1926)
- The Magic, Magic Carpet (1950)
Public Domain Film Appearances[]
- The Thief of Baghdad (1924)
Public Domain Comic Appearances[]
- Star Comics #2
- Four Color #415
- Wow Comics #20
- Happy Rabbit #48
- Tip Top Comics #103
- Boy Comics #26
- Shield Wizard Comics #13
- Heroic Comics #25
- Frankenstein #10
- Jingle Jangle Comics #18
- Supermouse #2
- Sinclair Oil RD 119: The Miracle In Your Gas Tank
- Pocket Comics #1-4
Notes[]
- While Aladdin possessed a Magic Carpet in the Disney film, Prince Husain is the character who buys a Magic Carpet in the original One Thousand and One Nights, Disney's version was partly inspired by the 1940 remake of The Thief of Bagdad, which already featured elements such as the magic carpet.