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Embroidered undergarment in metallic thread - UAE

Local Name	Sarwal dag khus
Object Category	Undergarment
Gender	Female
Date of object	1990
Place Of orgin	United Arab Emirates
Region	Al Ain
Object Range	Iran, Qatar, United Arab Emirates
Dimensions	Length: 80 cm Width: 40 cm
Materials	Cotton
Technique	Machine Embroidered Machine Stitched
Color
Motif	Geometric
Provenance	Purchased, Sharjah market 1990
Location	The Zay Zay: (Arabic: costume, Pl. azyaā’), a set of clothes in a style typical of a particular country or historical period. Initiative
Status	In storage
ZI number	ZI1990.500115 UAE

Object History 
spotted 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.

) on one of her field trips at Sharjah market in 1990.

Object Features 
These printed cotton underpants (, 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.

) sport decorative ankle-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.

) that recalls the hand adorned (talli_badlah) in its overall shape and size. However, in this example, the adornment is achieved using the less-expensive more contemporary method of machine embroidery () in silver metallic thread (dag_khus). All the while mimicking the basic badlah_talli with a centre portion (_), hand-stitched side by side in different motifs, and hemmed by a few lines forming the rim (trāf).) decorated at the top in a jagged edge () motif, and (talli_ftul) motif is repeated on the side borders ().
The baggy waistline is gathered and fixed in place with elasticated ribbon replacing earlier more traditional cotton cords (). The more tapered legs with embroidered ankle-cuffs are opened and closed with the aid of a zipper. Earlier versions used traditional cotton thread ball buttons (igam) and more recently, metal snap studs ().

Embroidered undergarment in metallic thread - UAE

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