Since the ancient past this territory had been inhabited by different tribes and peoples, superceding and assimilating with each other, and. at tunes, disappearing forever. But the arts and crafts and their trade have been passed down from one generation to another leaving behind deep impressions of their lifestyle aesthetics and philosophy.
    Mongolists hold the view that the second half of the second millennium BC was for Mongolia a period of highly developed smelting during which appeared the CARA-SUKSKY style in arts appertaining to the late Bronze Age. This is evidenced by the sculptured heads of wild animals with long ears. Huge eyes. Giant horns on bronze knives daggers and other objects. The CARA-SUKSKY bronze style spread from Mongolia and the Ordos into China and southern Siberia.
    An early form of religion of all Paleo-Asian tribes was Shamanism, the worshipping of the spirit of nature. Ancient peoples had their own tribal totems, and they revered and offered prayers to them. They carved out of wood different Shamanism’s objects in the form of beasts, birds and animals, which can be regarded as authentic works of carving, applique and ornamentation in special rhythm and composition. With the spread and domination of Buddhism, arts and crafts and their trade were influenced by the religion. There appeared elements of Indian. Tibetan and Nepalese art.
    Gungerva (vessels for offering gifts to Idols), incense burners and other Items, wind and percussion musical instruments, used during divine services were creations of folk craftsmen. Every craftsman made them within his own talent, and capabilities, which gave wide opportunities for the advancement of creative fantasy and the appearance of artistic individuality.
    Objects of everyday life in particular, reflecting man's world outlook, are distinguished for their diversity and richness.
The Ger has long been the basic dwelling of the nomads and its furniture and decor are an entire gallery of arts and crafts.
One frequently sees in legends and stones canticles extolling gers and palaces. One such canticle about the palace of Ulan Bodon goes:
"Sculptured on the upper beams of the gates.
Are peacocks and pheasants with outstretched neck?
Hewed on the lower beams of the gates.
Are kites and tumblers swooping in clouds"
The gers a rich happy abode
On four firm birch props
On the firm props-pillars
Are clustered tigers and lions."
    The ger its shape, structure, painting and utensils, tested through time and lifestyle have come down to our time with very little change.
The different Mongolian tribes are distinguished by their dress and its decoration. The Mongolian saying "The dress god the body-devil" comes from the moral admonition that dress and Its decorations should suit the complexion of a person and be chosen according to taste.
Mongolia has produced many kinds and styles of national dress, including more than a hundred types of headgear. The correct cuts of the dress. Its finishing, sewing and embroidery, were the tasks of women, while the making of headgear. Its complex embroidery and applique of colored leather, were all masculine jobs.
    The art of Mongolian folk craftsmen can be subdivided Into over twenty types: blacksmiths' artifacts of Iron and bronze, castings from these metals, artistic wood carvings, ornaments and applique of leather, raised Inscriptions, embroidery, gold and silver work sculpture and other types of art.
    Almost every Ho shuns (banner) and aimag (administrative division) of the country was famous for its work in one of these handicrafts. For instance, the principality of Dalai Choinkhor was famous for its smiths, the Sam Noyon Khan for Its carving. Dariganga for silver work Urga for applique, and so on.
    The Mongolians over the centuries created their own national ornaments, which were expressions of the artistic Intellect of the people. reflecting their feeling for the beauty in nature.
These are of various types: Zoomorphic which Intertwined fantasies of people, horns of wild sheep, ox nostrils, birds and others. Vegetable, which used leaves, flowers, grass, trees, twigs and shrubs natural phenomena. In the form of clouds, mountains, smoke, flames, waves etc. and geometrical ornament - meanders, swastikas, "ulzii" of round and rhombic forms, ornaments of rectangular shapes
Ornaments are not an independent branch but are regarded an inseparable detail of basically all types of folk art containing deeply symbolic meaning. For instance, the Mongolians paint on the door of a ger or other household utensils the ornament "ulzii" to ensure family prosperity. Since long past the Mongolian people have held in respect the Darkhan (smiths), who held a particular standing in society? Peoples of the Darkhan family, as a rule always possessed certain talent and was skilled craftsmen.
    Rashid-ad-Din the Persian scholar of the 13th century A.D has brought to us the traditions of the Mongolian tribes who lived some two thousand years ago. He has it that one Mongolian tribe In Its battle with another was totally destroyed and there remained just two men and two women, who had no other choice but to leave their home. They traveled long crossing mountains and ridges, until they came upon a large and vast hollow amid mountains, a place abounding in cereals and game. And they remained there. Several centuries later, the place became too small for them for they had grown to become an entire nation. Then they decided to find a way out of the mountain valley. They had an Iron ore pit where they smelted iron. There they started carving their way out. They collected wood and coal in the forest, and made a huge bellow of seventy horse- and bull-skins, made a huge fire and smelted an iron mountain and went out to the vast steppe from the valley.
GE. Grum-Grjimaylo who traveled through western Mongolia and the land of the Uriankhais at the start of the century emphasized the particular significance of a blacksmith's trade among the foil handicrafts of Mongolia. If a functionary happened to visit a blacksmith, the latter could very well continue his work and not even greet the former, for it was assumed that the blacksmith's work came into being long before there were any functionaries. The trade of a blacksmith was equally widespread In all the aimags and was even of a hereditary nature, for it was passed down from father to son and so this trade had its own family secrets. The bulk of the blacksmiths was people with talent and could perform all operation. They made iron wheels. Intricate locks rivets different metallic household utensils, trimmings and decorations for harness ornamented quivers and decorative components of silver for men and women's outer garments. Metal fretwork was not only restricted to have decorative uses. The craftsmen made intricate figures of Buddha as tall as •'10 cm. These incomparable statues were polished to a bluish color and were as clear as glass, according tow eyewitnesses That's why ancient stones and legends said that the statues made of polished pure silver were smoother than ice decorated with rare semi-precious stones.
    Jewelers were making also widespread all over Mongolia. Jewelers made of iron and copper was often decorated with gold and silver ornaments, and later on when gold and silver were used for decorative purposes, they were covered with thin silver plates with Intricate ornamental designs. Head decoration crowns, clips and hairpins. Pendants used by the Khalkha Dariganga. Uzemchin and Buryat women and women of western Mongolia were usually made of silver framing with filigree ornamental design of gold and silver with coral turquols and other precious stones inlaid. Such a fine and Intricate trade were often raised to a highly develop Ed jewelers art by folk talents.
Metal fretwork by Mongolian craftsmen is worthy of praise:
    Their artifacts could be placed on a par with sophisticated carvings of sandalwood and tusk from China and India.
Since the Bronze Age the Mongolians have been following the tradition of casting and in the 19th century AD casting in bronze, brass and copper alloys were widespread. Ritual musical instruments and other cultural objects, like incense burners were cast. Hand and hanging bells were made by casting Every smith had his own method and style of moulding. For instance, all the 600 bells moulded by a well-known smith from Urga. Davadoij who lived in the early 20th century, varied from each other by their design, finishing, ornamental patterns, and their peculiar sound. A well moulded and a well-tuned bell produces a surprisingly clear and melodious sound, which vibrates for long and sounds like a tuning-fork while casting large and sophisticated articles, the method of span casting was used. Whose instructions at one time were written down by the great 17th-century Mongolian sculptor U. Zanabazar. Craftsmen used his technique for many years including Davadoij.
The Mongolians since early times have made wooden household accessories the ger cart Box cupboard, bucket, utensils musical instruments etc. Carvers made chess men domesticated animal figures, presses for printing books and gods and Intricate objets art.
Mongolian joiners, carpenters, cabinet-makers, paid particular attention to the correct drying and processing of wood. They cared for the quality of the material: when the free still grew in the forest. Its roots were removed, dried for along period, and then sawed down and its core pulled out. Then its pitch was washed off in river and if necessary boiled in water. Some of the utensils for instance troughs for watering herds and variousstupas were made of hard wood spoons, cup stirring rods.
    Ladies and other utensils were made of one-piece wood. Preferably of aspen grove, since it did not produce strange taste. Carpenters were clever musing the natural qualities of wood for instance, for making the toono. The upper ring of a ger. one half stem of a birch free was cut off in summer, and when it was completely dried it was bent on the side where the stem was not cut off.
For fretwork, the Mongolians used birch free, Pine wood, cornel, buckhorn, root of juniper - types of woods, which retained their humidity for a year. Sandalwood red and ebony, and others were also use din intricate carvings.
    The making of Mongolian national musical instruments has also long been regarded as a folk Handicraft. The most widespread folk musical instrument is the Morin hum the neck of the Morin huur was crowned with one, two and even three expressive beautiful horse heads and beneath them sometimes dragonheads too were carved out. Beautiful ornamental designs were carved on each side of the square body. The peg-head and the bow there are another such instrument, the Shanagan huur. Which was hollowed out from a solid wood or thin small boards glued together. The ornamental designs on the Shanagan huur were not carved out but made of thin strips of wood glued on it. Only an experience DP ERs on could make a real shanagan huur.
    Mongolian carvings were distinguished by their monumental nature. The chess pieces exhibited at the Museum of Fine Arts include Intricately carved camel figures, which, although are smaller than a Match-box, appear impressive and monumental.
In the early 20th century, all famous carvers were gathered in Urga from all parts of the country for executing a large piece of work for religious purposes: making a miniature heaven of Buddhist gods. They had also to make wooden presses for the three hundred volumes Ganjur and Danjur. A collection of Indo-Tibetan treatises on many branches of learning The Ganjur had 1260 and the Danjur 3427 parts and each of them had some 500-600 pages. All these works were excellently executed within a record short period.
    The carvers besides wood also used bones, stones and amber. Decorations of bone for dresses worn during the Tsam religious ceremonies were made as follows: camel bones were boiled down until they became snow white and could be used in costume jewelers.
Since women did long past embroidery, who cleverly handled needles and thread. This vast link in folk handicraft in its turn was divided into embroidery, applique and artistic stitching. Each of these had its own distinctive features. Applique and artistic stitching was widespread in nomadic regions. A traditional artistic embroidery work was found from a grave appertaining to the ancient Hun empire and the drawings on such felt carpets are even today occupant among all Turkish-Mongolian aimags.
    In west Mongolia, and especially among the Kazakhs, artistic applique is still common: cutting out ornamental designs from red brown and black material and stitching them onto felt carpets, are fringed of the same color. The Mongolians love to decorate their blue and sky blue tents with large white ornamental applique. In the ancient past the Mongolians made applique on felt carpets and on the coverings of gers about which European travelers of that period wrote extensively The Buddhist religion also quite frequently used applique for Its own purpose. The Mongolian masters created splendid Icons of sacred Buddhist Pantheons; they were brightly colored and made of expensive articles like silk and brocade and decorated with gems. Such icon-applique rivaled Thangka-painting and gradually applique became an independent art.
Artistic needlework using silver and gold laces stitched with thin thread became widespread in the late 19th century. The outer garments of privileged lamas, nobles and noyons were decorated with small river gems corrals and turquoise etc.
    Besides the aforementioned basic types of Mongolian arts and crafts, there were other original and distinctive ones too the method of making raised ornamental designs on leather Items was widespread. For instance in western Mongolia, water skins had beautiful and variegated designs. Such water-skins were practicable from the viewpoint of a nomadic way of life since they were light, durable and easy to carry around.
The Mongolians used raw hide and processed leather for making belts, bridles, harness, saddles and boots. They also made suede, which was used for making decorative elements on saddles, on Pack leather sacks, on pipe cases, on the top of boots etc.
Another type of applied art was Namha wickerwork of intricate knots of colored thread on wooden crosspieces with the help of threads of fine shade -blue white, red yellow and black - different wicker-works were made with zoomorphological and geometrical ornaments.
Another distinctive type of Mongolian arts and crafts was Zumber. Similar to raised ornamental designs. Ground porcelain or marble, granulated sugar and liquid glue were used and they were mixed into a thick mass. It was then put into a pot with a thin long tubular outlet and the desired patterns were made which resembled a fine carving or a bas-relief. After the mass solidified, the designs were painted, most often in yellow.