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Silver embellished undergarment – UAE

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Local Name	Sarwal talli badlah fadhah
Object Category	Undergarment
Gender	Female
Date of object	1950
Place Of orgin	United Arab Emirates
Region	Sharjah
Object Range	United Arab Emirates
Dimensions	Length: 102 cm Width: 40 cm
Materials	Silk
Technique	Machine Stitched Embellished
Color
Motif	Geometric
Provenance	Purchased, Um Abdullah, Sharjah 1975
Location	Traditional Dress House, Al Shindagha Museum, Dubai, UAE
Status	On loan
ZI number	ZI1975.50030 UAE

Object Note
We were fortunate to obtain this rare article, and another similar one (ZI1975.50020 UAE), from one source. Both are in great condition.

Object History 
Due to the prevailing notions of modesty in Arab cultures, this is one of the rarest undergarments in the UAE. objects like this rarely come to market because of their age, their high value due to the silver adornment, and last but not least, because they are undergarments (, shirwāl), trousers featuring tapering ankles and drawstring closure of Central Asian origin. They disseminated in the Indian subcontinent between c.1st-3rd century BCE. Although exact period of its arrival in the Arab world is disputed their widespread adoption is confirmed from the 12th century.

).
 has only come across a few silver examples in her lifetime. We are lucky to have three of them in The collection. This example was purchased, from a lady who, for the above mentioned rational, chose not to give her name, thus we know her as Abdullah, from the Al Muhairi tribe of the UAE.
Abdullah had stopped wearing this object because it’s old-fashioned. She had held on to it due to the value of the silver cuffs ( ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in India and parts of the subcontinent.

) and sentimental reasons. The garment was inherited () from her mother, who in turn was bequeathed it from her mother. As a child, Abdullah remembers her grandmother wearing them with a different fabric, for her mother recycled the object, replacing the original with taffeta () in her favourite colour of fuchsia ().
She felt reserved () over letting go of such an intimate article of dress. Like many other women who do not comprehend the documentary value of placing their items within a historical collection, they could only be encouraged to sell their items to The collection following the suggestion that they use the proceeds as (), to help build a mosque or school. Their reserve was multi-layered; it being an undergarment an intimate article of dress. In addition, the act of selling can infer financial need, and even after they were convinced to do so for the sake of charity, they followed the tradition that dictates one does not publicly declare good deeds.

Object Features
As silver is the main embellishing element of the decorative cuffs ( ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in India and parts of the subcontinent.

) on these undergarments (, shirwāl), trousers featuring tapering ankles and drawstring closure of Central Asian origin. They disseminated in the Indian subcontinent between c.1st-3rd century BCE. Although exact period of its arrival in the Arab world is disputed their widespread adoption is confirmed from the 12th century.

), it means they were not made for everyday use, except for those who could afford it. They were made of braided pure silver straw (khus_talli) and represent a physical example of the traditional Arabic saying (), meaning “beauty and wealth in one”. The silver normally decorated the visible cuffs ( ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in India and parts of the subcontinent.

) to show status and style and could be melted down and sold in times of need.
The visible cuffs are generally composed of multiple lines of braids () or (), that are individually created by knotting together cotton (), silk () or synthetic () threads with silver (), gold plated or metallic () straw. This has resulted in the creation of over 40 distinct recorded designs, in varying widths and intricacies, often named after the motifs depicted on them.
The ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in India and parts of the subcontinent.

consists of the large central part (_), hand-stitched side by side in different motifs, and hemmed by a few lines forming the rim (trāf).) and the edges (). The _), hand-stitched side by side in different motifs, and hemmed by a few lines forming the rim (trāf). can be between one and 20 braids of ( ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

) with different decorations, then the braids are sewn manually with each other so that the _), hand-stitched side by side in different motifs, and hemmed by a few lines forming the rim (trāf). is surrounded by the to form its borders.
The traditional basic style of ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in India and parts of the subcontinent.

includes several stripes called (talli_shakl), which are located between the _), hand-stitched side by side in different motifs, and hemmed by a few lines forming the rim (trāf). and the . Usually, a (talli_qitan) is placed on the lower edge, while the upper edge is decorated with a () or (). Each braid is made separately and then the braids are manually sewn together.
The large and wide ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in India and parts of the subcontinent.

is usually reserved for social occasions, and the smaller, narrower one is applied on an everyday , shirwāl), trousers featuring tapering ankles and drawstring closure of Central Asian origin. They disseminated in the Indian subcontinent between c.1st-3rd century BCE. Although exact period of its arrival in the Arab world is disputed their widespread adoption is confirmed from the 12th century.

or those worn by an elderly woman.
In this example, the central portion _), hand-stitched side by side in different motifs, and hemmed by a few lines forming the rim (trāf). of the visible cuffs ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; tariq; badla; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in the North African Arab region specifically in Egypt.

; ), series of small metal knots made on a woven net ground as embellishment. The term is commonly used in India and parts of the subcontinent.

is composed of four cords/braids ; the top braid is in black cotton () thread and silver straw , created in a saw tooth motif called ; the second one, below it is in white cotton thread and silver straw, in one running stitch motif called (talli_fatlah) or (talli_khusah); the third band is in red cotton thread and silver straw, also in one running stitch motif called talli_fatlah or talli_khusah; and the fourth, final band is in black cotton thread and silver straw, with a repeated eye like motif called (talli_’ain_mozah).
The cuff edges are all created in the style of talli_fatlah or talli_khusah using three red, white, and black braids.
The undergarment , shirwāl), trousers featuring tapering ankles and drawstring closure of Central Asian origin. They disseminated in the Indian subcontinent between c.1st-3rd century BCE. Although exact period of its arrival in the Arab world is disputed their widespread adoption is confirmed from the 12th century.

is relatively simple in adornment, yet still, demonstrates elegance while making a statement about the owner’s social status. The fact that the silk taffeta fabric is used in abundance for the full garment, rather than just on the lower visible parts reinforces this point.
Repair work has been carried out on the object in order to extend its life. In addition to the use of the fuchsia fabric noted above, metal snaps () were also added during a later repair, probably in the 1980s. It has also had some cotton fabric with a floral print inserted as lining to the decorative cuffs, in order to fortify the garment.

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