Object History
This item was purchased by Dr. Reem Tariq El Mutwalli from an independent antique dealer in France in 2021 after she spotted it through social media. She added the item to The Zay Initiative collections to enhance it and continues to look for the rest of the items to complete the ensemble, as seen in the accompanying black-and-white image.
Object Features
This is a woman’s waistcoat (ghlilah) in silk of (satin) (damask) weave with brocade highlights featuring a heavily embellished neckline and sleeve trimmings.
The waistcoat’s field is constructed of ivory satin silk damask brocade with metal, possibly gold yarns. The field repeats three different types of floral bouquets. One is short and stubby with two central flowers, while the other two are long and willowy. One has the flower at the centre, while the other has the flower tilting to the side.
The hemline is trimmed with braided metal threads of possibly gold (fatlah). It is an open-front jacket with two (frog_fastner) style buttons made of corded metal threads. Each side of the opening at the pectoral region is embellished with a wide panel of gold braided trimmings and gold braid woven mesh using (couching) style embroidery.
The centre of it displays an elongated rhomboidal eye-like shape with metal sequins and cords also in gold. The edge of the embellishment is trimmed with repeats of spirals also done using couching style embroidery. The rest of the neckline is trimmed with bell-shaped faux buttons eight on each side which is covered with metal threads. The back of the neckline is trimmed with a thin braid of purple floss silk. The seamlines along the shoulders and the sleeve hems are also trimmed with several rows of thick metal braids that form a wide panel.
The ghlilah is a completely hand-stitched and hand-embroidered piece and is lined with a plain ivory satin fabric with thick cotton corded edging.
More Details
The dearth of pre-colonial Algerian documents poses a challenge in tracing the evolution of women’s attire. One of the earliest Western accounts of Algiers comes from Spanish Friar Diego de Haëdo from c. 1612, detailing observations made between 1578 and 1581.
The ghlilah, described during this period, was a waistcoat made of satin, velvet, or damask, falling to mid-leg length. It featured a wide neckline fastened above the breasts with large gold or silver buttons and could have either sleeveless or elbow-length sleeves. At times, the term referred directly to the function of supporting a woman’s bosom and was typically worn over a sheer-sleeved undershirt, along with full-length balloon-shaped trousers. By the 19th century, this form-fitting vest became a common everyday garment for most Algerian women, usually concealed under a full-body cloak in public.
Historians trace the origin of this garment to the Eurasian steppes in antiquity, introduced to Eastern and Northern Europe by the Scythians. While vests and waistcoats gained popularity in Central Asia and Northern Europe, their integration into Mediterranean attire likely occurred much later. It wasn’t until c. 12th century C.E. that Byzantines adapted large open-front robes worn by Persian soldiers, influencing Ottoman and North African fashion. When the Ottomans expanded their empire to the Maghreb in the 16th century, Egypt and Algeria were the first to come under Ottoman rule, followed by Libya and Tunisia. Heavily embroidered waistcoats like the ghlilah and farmlah became prominent, particularly in coastal cities with active Mediterranean trade. Algerian embroidery bore a closer resemblance to Turkish styles than to other North African ones. Algiers, a major trading hub, reflected this similarity. Tunisia, under Ottoman control from 1574, incorporated elements from Andalusia into coastal urban fashion, giving rise to garments like the farmlah. Although Morocco wasn’t under Ottoman rule, it developed similar open-front tunic traditions, with less influence from the Levant and less metal-thread embroidery compared to Tunisia and Algeria.
The most intricate embroidery traditions were found in Algeria’s coastal cities, where Mediterranean trade and influences converged, creating a multicultural blend that defined urban wear. This garment became a unifying visual, cultural, and fashionable element for the women of Algiers, bridging ethnic and religious differences.
Haëdo distinguished two versions of the ghlilah, a modest local variation dating back to the 15th century, and a distinguished Ottoman-influenced version with a deeper, curved neckline. Both featured detachable sleeves for adaptability to weather conditions. The metal thread embroidery, often in gold or silver, was likely sourced from local Jewish silversmiths who migrated to the Maghreb after the fall of Granada in 1492. The oval, elongated, triangular motif on the front yoke likely served as a talismanic “evil eye” amulet, a protective symbol in the Middle East, Near East, and Mediterranean regions since antiquity. While not tied to a specific religious canon, it integrated into monotheistic faiths, particularly Judaism and Islam, remaining relevant in North Africa and the Arab world through the centuries. Its persistence into the 19th century indicates its continued importance in local sartorial styles and cultural significance, reflecting economic disparities within Algerian society, as the quality and form of embroidered motifs varied based on the wearer’s social and economic status.
Additionally, an Algerian farmlah can be often confused and indeed is interchangeably used with the ghlilah, however, the farmlah is a later evolved version of the ghlilah. While the ghlilah often features a deep wide neckline and a corset-like structured silhouette a farmlah is more of a waistcoat with front fastening buttons and often a pectoral ornamented neckline. An example of a similar Algerian ghlilah, can be found at the Musée d’art et d’histoire du Judaïsme (https://mahj.org/fr/decouvrir-collections-betsalel/gilet-65029).
Links
- Belkaïd, Leyla, and Paul Balta. Algeroises: Histoire d’un Costume Mediterraneen. Edisud, 1998.
- Belkaïd, Leyla. Costumes d’algérie. Editions Du Layeur, 2003.
- Pichault, Pradette. Le Costume Traditionnel Algérien. Maisonneuve & Larose, 2007.
- Montaldo, Elisabetta, and Clotilde Sarnico. L’oro Del Mare: L’antico Costume Delle Donne Di Procida. Libreria Dante & Descartes, 2009.
- Snoap, Morgan, “Algerian Women’s Waistcoats – The Ghlila and Frimla: Readjusting the Lens on the Early French Colonial Era in Algeria (1830-1870)” (2020). Honors Program Theses. 114. https://scholarship.rollins.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1113&context=honors
- Belkaïd Neri, Leyla. “Croisements et Hybridations Des Modes Vestimentaires.” Paraître et Apparences En Europe Occidentale Du Moyen Âge à Nos Jours – Croisements et Hybridations Des Modes Vestimentaires, Presses universitaires du Septentrion, 1 Jan. 1970, https://books.openedition.org/septentrion/57558
- “UNESCO – Rites and Craftsmanship Associated with the Wedding Costume Tradition of Tlemcen.” Intangible Cultural Heritage, https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/rites-and-craftsmanship-associated-with-the-wedding-costume-tradition-of-tlemcen-00668
- https://www.mahj.org/fr/decouvrir-collections-betsalel/gilet-19172
- “Home.” Nationalclothing.Org, https://nationalclothing.org/africa/48-algeria/566-algerian-folk-clothing-from-different-regions-of-the-country.html
- https://algerianculture.tumblr.com/post/37551143532/76945-costume-researchand-more-algerian
- https://istizada.com/arab-clothing-the-ultimate-guide/
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