'Karakul lamb pelts were traded far afield and always fetched a good price'

'Karakul sheep which produce Astrakhan wool'

Astrakhan pelts have long been famed for their incredible softness and their beautiful tight curls of lamb wool. Known as Astrakhan pelts, because they were mainly traded there, the pelts were coveted by anyone living in a cold climate and wanting a hat made of such a luxurious pelt. The pelts came from Turkestan and Khiva was one of the production centres. European and Persian sheep farmers would envy the quality of the skins, desperate to learn the secret of their success. It was rumoured that to achieve the softness required, the fetal lamb was cut out of the womb prematurely. However, Gustav Krist, on his travels to Central Asia, attempted to put the record straight.

"Almost all travellers in Turkestan have let themselves be tempted into regaling terrible horrors connected with the process of procuring these skins....
The pelt of the Kora Kul sheep - wrongly called Persian, or Astrakhan, or Fat Tail in Europe - appears to reach its best condition in the two oases of Kora Kul and Katta Kurgan.... The lambskins are mostly exported via Persia or Astrakhan, a fact which no doubt accounts for the inaccurate names given them in Europe.
While I was staying in Kora Kul I took time and trouble to investigate this question and see for myself the method by which the skins are procured. Contrary to the prevailing rumour, the pregnant ewes are treated with the greatest care and tenderness, especially in the last days before the lambs are born. The mother sheep are far too valuable to be sacrificed or maltreated in any way, and the infant lambs are likewise handled with affectionate attention. They are killed on the fourth or eighth day. The little pelt is at once wrapped in salt and barley flour to preserve the curls. It is therefore an absolute myth that the ewes belly is cut open while she is still alive and that the lamb must be slaughtered whilst still warm in its mothers womb in order to preserve the beauty of the skin."
Gustav Krist - Journey through a Forbidden Land 1939

'Lambskins ready for sale'

It seems that the secret of the lamb skins was rooted in the soil, pasture or air of Turkestan, as attempts to relocate herds in other countries, failed to produce the same softness of the Astrakhan skins, which are still produced in Uzbekistan today.