Object Note
Part of a lot along with one more item (ZI2023.501011 PALESTINE) also in the collection.
Object History
This piece was purchased by Dr. Reem Tariq El Mutwalli from Alma Auctions, a Tel Aviv in 2023 to add to and enhance The Zay Initiative collections.
Object Features
This is a Palestinian women’s tiara or headband (saffah) with Ottoman coins of several denominations arranged in gradual size along a coloured wool or possibly camel hair headband.
The coins are silver and are mostly dated from Hijri 1223 which corresponds to c 1809-1810 CE which is essentially the rule of the Ottoman Emperor Mahmud II, bearing his inscriptions (tughra).
The saffah resembles the olive wreaths from ancient times unique to the Levant and Mediterranean regions and perhaps even evolved from it. The saffah is a popular women’s traditional headgear all across the Levant region, however, the style of this piece is reminiscent of the style prevalent in the Ramallah and neighbouring regions in the 19th century.
Should we mention it is worn with or without an ‘araqiyah?
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.
- Kawar, Widad, and Tania Tamari Nasir. Palestinian Embroidery: Traditional “Fallahi” Cross-Stitch. Al-Moʼassasa al-Aarabiyya Lildirasat Wa al-Nashr, 2003.
- Kawar, Widad Kamel. Threads of Identity: Preserving Palestinian Costume and Heritage. Rimal Publications, 2011.
- Dimitrova, Pamela. “The Traditional Clothing of Palestine.” Arab America, 30 Oct. 2019, https://www.arabamerica.com/the-traditional-clothing-of-palestine/
- Suleman, Fahmida. Textiles of the Middle East and Central Asia – the Fabric of Life. Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2017.
- ÇATALKAYA GÖK, Ebru. “Çi̇tari̇ fabric.” TURKISH ONLINE JOURNAL OF DESIGN ART AND COMMUNICATION, vol. 11, no. 2, 2021, pp. 443–453, https://doi.org/10.7456/11102100/008
- Van der Walt, Ansie. “Introduction to Embroidery from the Arab World.” Weave a Real Peace Creating a Connected Textile Community, 1 May 2022, https://weavearealpeace.org/warp-blog/embroidery-from-the-arab-world/
- https://artsandculture.google.com/story/aQUBtwXxH-DhKQ
- https://www.tirazcentre.org/en
- https://encyclocraftsapr.com/textiles-6/
- https://encyclocraftsapr.com/embroidery-4/
- https://trc-leiden.nl/trc/index.php/en/blog/1503-a-hebron-embroidery-recently-added-to-the-trc-collection-and-what-it-can-tell
- https://trc-leiden.nl/trc/index.php/en/blog/1316-palestinian-embroidery
- https://trc-leiden.nl/trc/index.php/en/blog/1281-a-palestinian-embroidery-sampler
- https://trc-leiden.nl/trc/index.php/en/blog/1149-embroidered-dresses-from-the-southern-region-of-jordan-ma-an-city
- https://trc-leiden.nl/trc/index.php/en/blog/1183-a-changing-tradition
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