Cotton face mask – UAE

Object Note
A Batch of 5 identical face masks came in this lot.
Object History 
Dr. Reem Tariq EL Mutwalli Dr. Reem Tariq el Mutwallī: Founder (CEO) of the Zay Zay: (Arabic: costume, Pl. azyaā’), a set of clothes in a style typical of a particular country or historical period. Initiative, a public figure, speaker and author. An expert curator and consultant in Islamic art and architecture, interior design, historic costume, and UAE heritage. while visiting a heritage fair in 2015 met with a few lady crafters one was selling face masks and the two struck a chord. Um ‘Um: (Arabic: mother), a sign of respect or formality, women are not addressed by their own names, rather as mother of, then adding the name of the eldest son as in Um Mohammed. Also can mean: with, for example (‘um mishakhiṣ) meaning with gold embellishment. Zayid, offered a few of the samples she had made for the fair, and it is now part of The Zay Zay: (Arabic: costume, Pl. azyaā’), a set of clothes in a style typical of a particular country or historical period. collection.
Rodah Ahmed, Um ‘Um: (Arabic: mother), a sign of respect or formality, women are not addressed by their own names, rather as mother of, then adding the name of the eldest son as in Um Mohammed. Also can mean: with, for example (‘um mishakhiṣ) meaning with gold embellishment. Zayid, born and raised in Dubai, is in her late sixties. Married to her paternal cousin at the age of fifteen, she bore three daughters and four sons. She finished her high school degree as part of adult education evening classes. Skilled at making face masks she developed her own cottage industry catering to her family, friends, and neighbourhood.
Object Features 
The overall shape (gardhah Garḍah: (Arabic: qaraḍa: to bite), in the context of clothing in the UAE it means 'to shape' or 'form'. The (qaf) is pronounced as a (ga) in colloquial Arabic of the Gulf region.) of the face mask (burgu Burgu’: (Arabic: burqa’: mask, pl. barāqi’), a generic name given to one of many forms of face veils or masks, known as (niqāb). Stiffer versions made of indigo-dyed cotton, are known as (bat Bāṭ: (Arabic: underarm/armpit, pl. bītān, synonym: ibt, tkhrāṣah, tnfāyah/tnfājah), gusset, a triangular or rhomboidal piece of fabric inserted into the seam to add breadth or reduce stress from tight-fitting clothing. Used for underarms on tunic dresses, side sleeve panels on overgarments (thāwb), and undergarments (ṣarāwl). ūlah) in Oman and Qatar. The (qāf) turns to (ga) in many Arab dialects.) follows the (myani Myānī: (Persian: median), colloquially in the UAE the term refers to a medium proportioned face mask (Burgu).) style, named after the overall shape of the mask and generally associated with the tribes in the northern Emirates. The indigo Indigo: (Latin: Indigo – India, synonym: nil Nīl: (Latin: indigo), Arabised term for Indigo, a natural dye belonging to the ‘Indigofera Tinctoria’ species of plants that have been cultivated in East Asia, Egypt, India, and Peru since antiquity. According to Pliny the Elder, it was named after India as it was the source of the dye.), a natural dye belonging to the ‘Indigofera Tinctoria’ species of plants that has been cultivated in East Asia, Egypt, India, and Peru since antiquity. According to Pliny the Elder, it was named after India as it was the source of the dye.  -dyed, burqu fabric (nil Nīl: (Latin: indigo), Arabised term for Indigo, a natural dye belonging to the ‘Indigofera Tinctoria’ species of plants that have been cultivated in East Asia, Egypt, India, and Peru since antiquity. According to Pliny the Elder, it was named after India as it was the source of the dye.) is found in grades of bluish to purple, which is then rubbed and pounded to produce a metallic luster ranging from yellow to brown to reddish gold.
The indigo Indigo: (Latin: Indigo – India, synonym: nil Nīl: (Latin: indigo), Arabised term for Indigo, a natural dye belonging to the ‘Indigofera Tinctoria’ species of plants that have been cultivated in East Asia, Egypt, India, and Peru since antiquity. According to Pliny the Elder, it was named after India as it was the source of the dye.), a natural dye belonging to the ‘Indigofera Tinctoria’ species of plants that has been cultivated in East Asia, Egypt, India, and Peru since antiquity. According to Pliny the Elder, it was named after India as it was the source of the dye.   dye would stain the wearer’s face after repeated wear which meant a cloth lining, usually made from cotton, was inserted underneath the traditional face mask burgu Burgu’: (Arabic: burqa’: mask, pl. barāqi’), a generic name given to one of many forms of face veils or masks, known as (niqāb). Stiffer versions made of indigo-dyed cotton, are known as (bat Bāṭ: (Arabic: underarm/armpit, pl. bītān, synonym: ibt, tkhrāṣah, tnfāyah/tnfājah), gusset, a triangular or rhomboidal piece of fabric inserted into the seam to add breadth or reduce stress from tight-fitting clothing. Used for underarms on tunic dresses, side sleeve panels on overgarments (thāwb), and undergarments (ṣarāwl). ūlah) in Oman and Qatar. The (qāf) turns to (ga) in many Arab dialects. to prevent this. By the 1980s the trend changed to using strips of masking tape (lazig lazig: (Arabic: laziq: glue), Colloquially in the UAE term refers to masking tape or clear acrylic sheets that are glued to the back of face masks (barāgi’) to help protect the face from getting stained by indigo dye, and help stiffen the fabric. The (qāf) turns to (ga) in many Arab dialects.), which were superseded at the turn of the century by clear transparent adhesive sheets, cut to shape, as can be seen in this example.
The mask burgu Burgu’: (Arabic: burqa’: mask, pl. barāqi’), a generic name given to one of many forms of face veils or masks, known as (niqāb). Stiffer versions made of indigo-dyed cotton, are known as (bat Bāṭ: (Arabic: underarm/armpit, pl. bītān, synonym: ibt, tkhrāṣah, tnfāyah/tnfājah), gusset, a triangular or rhomboidal piece of fabric inserted into the seam to add breadth or reduce stress from tight-fitting clothing. Used for underarms on tunic dresses, side sleeve panels on overgarments (thāwb), and undergarments (ṣarāwl). ūlah) in Oman and Qatar. The (qāf) turns to (ga) in many Arab dialects. is fastened to the head using braided cord known as (shbuch Shbūch: (Arabic: shabak: interlace), Colloquially in the UAE term refers to braided cotton or metallic cord used to fasten face mask (burgu’) to the head. The (kāf) turns to (cha) in local dialect.); in red, white, or brown cotton cord, or silver/gold metallic coil, or a combination of the two as in this example.
 
Keywords: Burgu Burgu’: (Arabic: burqa’: mask, pl. barāqi’), a generic name given to one of many forms of face veils or masks, known as (niqāb). Stiffer versions made of indigo-dyed cotton, are known as (bat Bāṭ: (Arabic: underarm/armpit, pl. bītān, synonym: ibt, tkhrāṣah, tnfāyah/tnfājah), gusset, a triangular or rhomboidal piece of fabric inserted into the seam to add breadth or reduce stress from tight-fitting clothing. Used for underarms on tunic dresses, side sleeve panels on overgarments (thāwb), and undergarments (ṣarāwl). ūlah) in Oman and Qatar. The (qāf) turns to (ga) in many Arab dialects.’_myani