DepartmentTextiles-Middle East
Thobe
NameDress
Artist
Artist Not Recorded
CulturePalestinian
Dateca. 1910
Place madeFormer Al-Dawayima, near Hebron Subdistrict, West Bank, Palestine Territory, Middle East or West Asia, Asia
MediumIndigo dyed linen, silk
Dimensionsoverall: 1 M 48.5 CM X 1 M 40 CM (FROM SLEEVE TIP TO SLEEVE TIP)
Credit LineIFAF Collection
Object numberFA.1972.25.22
Collections
FA. 72.25-22 Thõb (ca. 1910) Of handwoven blue indigo linen, this dress is from the former village of Dawaimeh (near the present village of Amaziah), which lay about sixteen kilometers east of Hebron. The silk cross stitch embroidery is predominantly red with a sprinkling of violet, orange, yellow, white, green, and black. The lower half of the qabbeh is in the qelāyed (“necklaces”) pattern. The upper half consists of alternating columns of diamonds, called el-ferrāneh (“the baker's wife”), and eight-pointed stars called qamr (“moons”). The side panels of the skirt are completely covered with embroidered columns, six on each panel, which are identical on each side. The outer column is the nakhleh (“palm") motif. The next column is in the ward wil-‘aleq (“rose and leech”), and the two middle columns are the khēm el-bāshā (“the pasha's tent”), also called șābūn (“soap”). Each of these columns is topped with various trees. The diyāl consists of alternating columns of khēm el-bāshā and ward wil-ʻaleq. The dāyer has fish-bone embroidery (sabaleh or ḥabkeh) with the colors alternating at equal intervals. There is no embroidery on the long, pointed sleeves. Running the entire length at the outside of each sleeve is a band of purple fabric with narrow green, red, and orange stripes called abū ķizz aħmar (linen weft, silk warp). It is joined to the sleeve with zigzag chain stitching (whereas on FA. 72.25-la it is part of the fabric from which the sleeve is cut). The yoke of this dress is of atlas silk with red and yellow stripes (qamħa ħamra). There is a narrow piece of scalloped silk appliqué separating it from the qabbeh. Length: 144 cm. Width: 96 cm. (Palestinian Costume and Jewelry, Yedida Kalfon Stillman, 1979 ISBN: 0-82630490-7)
