Atlas Silk Workshop

Atlas silk - the vivid, feathered ikat weave of Central Asia - has been produced in Kashgar for centuries, and the old city still holds workshops where the dyeing and weaving happen on wooden looms. The finished bolts glow with the region's signature colors: deep reds, turquoise, and gold.

Buy a scarf or a bolt to take home, watch the dyers working in the courtyard, and understand why the Silk Road traded in fabric before almost anything else. The workshops are used to foreign visitors, prices are fair, and bargaining is part of the pleasure.