Thobe

NameDress

Artist Artist Not Recorded

CulturePalestinian

Dateca. 1920-1930

Place madeKfar Shalem, near Jaffa, Historic Palestine, Middle East or West Asia, Asia

Mediumcotton

Dimensionsoverall: 1 M 37 CM X 1 M 41.5 CM

Credit LineIFAF Collection

Object numberFA.1972.25.17

Collections

Palestinian Dress and Jewelry

DescriptionWoman's, "Thob". Hand loomed, white ground woven in Majadal. Sides from waist to hem, sleeves, cuffs, back panel, breastplate, and upper back of cord thread, trimmed with silk thread (Bethlehem stitch) with couch stitched in mainly brown.

FA. 72.25–17 Thöb (1920-30) Made from handwoven, natural color cotton, this dress is from the village of Salama (now called Kefar Shalem), about two kilometers outside of Jaffa. The embroidery is silk couching and filling stitches, mainly in brown, orange, green, blue, and magenta. Both technique and motifs are very inferior Bethlehem imitations. The couching is done with cotton cord (tahrireh) rather than metallic thread of gold or silver. The embroidery on the skirt, yoke, and sleeves follows Bethlehem patterns. The qabbeh, however, lacks the stylized flower pot and is close structurally to a type of chest panel from Ramallah and Hebron which is composed of vertical, embroidered strips running along the neck opening. The qabbeh and yoke of this dress are of one piece. The vertical embroidered bands on the skirt and sleeves are executed directly onto the fabric; there are no silk insets. The hem is appliquéd with a narrow scalloped band of brown silk on top of which is multicolored silk embroidery in feather stitch. Length: 135 cm. Width: 72.5 cm. (Palestinian Costume and Jewelry, Yedida Kalfon Stillman, 1979 ISBN: 0-82630490-7)