Object History
This dress was donated to The Zay Initiative in 2021 by a social media follower of The Zay who identified herself as Di.
Unfortunately, due to the loss of communication with the generous donor, The Zay Initiative team has minimal knowledge about her except that she had acquired, perhaps purchased this dress from an Artisanat Zghorta store in c. 1966, while she was living there as an expat.
Artisanat Zghorta is a prominent workshop established in 1966 in the city of Zghorta, Lebanon promoting traditional Lebanese crafts.
The Zay Initiative team has tried reaching out to Di several times following the reception of this article but sadly to no avail. However, the team at The Zay extends their heartfelt gratitude to Di and her attempt at enhancing The Zay Initiative collection.
Object Features
This is a black silk tunic dress (gallabiyah) with a round neck, zip as well, hook and eye closure at the back, and long loose sleeves.
The field of the gallabiyah is embellished with chain stitch style embroidery with metal thread possibly in gold and silver. The embellishment features a central floral motif with a total of four stylized (palmette) shaped leaves flanking it from both sides.
Two long leaves with an upward orientation and two broad but shorter leaves at the base mirror each other creating a stylised cypress tree (saru) motif with the flower at the centre.
The central floral motif is also surrounded by three small roundels on the top and is followed by a long stem at the bottom that has curly tendrils on either side and a base that gives way to three similar but smaller floral motifs.
A similar pattern is repeated on the sleeves but in a slightly smaller scale. The piece is lined with a black silk fabric of (satin) weave and is completely machine-stitched. It also retains the tag of the maker that testifies to the fact that it was a handmade piece in a size 42 by Artisanat Zghorta in Lebanon.
Links
- Stillman, Yedida Kalfon, and Norman A. Stillman. Arab Dress a Short History from the Dawn of Islam to Modern Times. Brill, 2000.
- Weber, Heike. ANAT and Her Hero BAAL The Embroidery Pattern Language of the Levant. Syrian Handcrafts Limited.
- Kalter, Johannes. Arts and Crafts of Syria. Thames and Hudson, 1993.
- Suleman, Fahmida. Textiles of the Middle East and Central Asia – the Fabric of Life. Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2017.
- https://gulfnews.com/photos/lifestyle/gulf-what-differentiates-the-dishdasha-from-the-kandora-1.1601284787970?slide=2
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