Talking Threads - Pitt Rivers Museum

A very colourful boy's abayeh (cloak/sleeveless jacket) from Antioch, now Antakya, in Turkey. The designs are woven in with yarns of spun yellow cotton and gold metallic thread.

Exquisite details of a woman's thobe collected from Bethlehem, made before 1870, probably in Jerusalem. (1952.5.87)

Qabbah (chest panel) of broadcloth and taffeta appliqué with embroidery in silk thread.

Connecting stitch in alternating colours of silk thread at the hem.

Stripes of yellow silk and metallic gold thread ornamenting the back of the thobe.

Aqal or agal (head-rope) for a Keffiyeh (head-cloth), worn by Bedouin men. Often made with camel hair, this example comprises wool yarns bound at intervals with yellow, black and pink cotton.

As-Salt, Jordan, made before 1902. (1902.9.52)

Detail of ghabani fabric, a luxury material produced in Syria and used to make a range of Palestinian garments and textiles.

The floral pattern of chain-stitch embroidery in gold thread is done using a tambour hook, either by hand or machine embroidery.

Strip of ghabani, Damascus, Syria, 19th Century (1967.28.9)

This beautiful silk fringe, made prior to the 1880s, has maintained its vibrant red and turquoise colours over 100 years later. Made in Ramallah, Palestine, this fringe was created for a khirqah (veil).

It was a privilege to meet virtually with Coast Salish weavers and elders on Monday. Together we studied and learnt from this wonderful weaving: mountain goat wool and woolly dog hair woven in an advanced twill. Vancouver Island, made before 1874.

Zeme Naga girl's skirt, made before 1924.

The main embroidered triangle design, representing swallows in flight, is repeated in miniature along the bottom of the skirt. Here it alternates with ten unique supplementary weft designs called 'tewyine pui', named after the paddy or rice bug. The skirt is finished with ties of orchid stem.

Spotted a little face staring back at us whilst photographing Naga textiles this morning! 🥺 Due to their iridescent appearance, Buprestid or 'jewel' beetles are regularly used to decorate Naga garments. Pitt Rivers Museum

This beautiful breast cloth, featuring decorative cowrie shells and dyed dog hair, would have been worn by Zeme Naga women during dances. The fringe is decorated with hardened beetle wings, known locally as ‘Kezui’, which are used to decorate garments to this day.

This unusual example of an Ao Naga men's shawl, made of red wool and dark blue cotton, features two rows of bells (usually found on women's clothing) and a triangle of white buttons. 🧵🧶

Tangkhul Naga shawl, a design now worn only by women. All decorative features are added during the weaving process, aside from the embroidered seams joining the four woven panels together.

Manipur, India, likely made prior to 1936. (2008.70.33)

Overlapping diamond design on a Lotha Naga man's shawl.
The patterned band is unique to Yimpang village, Nagaland.
Collected in August 1926. (1928.69.1082)

The veil is finished with a multicoloured tasselled fringe of silk. This is attached to an ornamental band of looped and twisted cotton yarn, covered in metallic thread.

Visit the Pitt Rivers and see this khirqah from Ramallah for yourself - on display in the Museum Court (ground floor).

Large cross designs formed of smaller geometric motifs fill the main fields of the veil. One particular motif, appearing as a string of six-pointed stars or flowers, is known as 'eyes wide open'.

An embroidered band of 'alaq' or 'leech' (enclosed S-shape) designs run down either side of the veil.

The second image features one of three large motifs known as the 'kohl bottle', again with a row of 'feathers' underneath.

The lower panels of the veil are densely embroidered in cross-stitch with floss silk in a range of vibrant colours.

The 'tall palm' repeating chevron designs and the borders of 'feathers' are very typical of the Ramallah region. The eight-pointed 'Moon of Bethlehem' also features heavily.

What other motifs can you see?

This week we will be spotlighting this beautiful khirqah (veil) from Ramallah, the counterpart to the thobe (dress) we have previously shared. Watch out for more posts exploring details and motifs!
Made in Ramallah, Palestine before 1887. (1967.28.45.2)

Skirt of a rich man's daughter, featuring supplementary weft motifs and embroidery in yellow cotton yarn and red wool.
Lotha Naga, Pangti village, Nagaland, collected 1936.
(1934.82.75)

'Tiger-cloth', also known as 'kizesü' or 'akwusü'. This striped shawl was worn by a man whose father had performed the mithun sacrifice. A single feather is attached to one corner.
Ao Naga, Yimjenkimong village, Nagaland, collected 1920.
(1928.69.158)

The qabbah (chest panel) of this girl's festive dress is decorated with serrated broadcloth appliqué (known as tishrimeh), tiny cross-stitch patterns, and two flowers formed of couched yellow silk cords filled in with satin stitch. (1966.9.13)

Palestinian girl's festive dress (1966.9.13), collected by the missionary Reverend A.W. Hands in 1887.

The dress is made from ikhdari fabric, a blue linen with stripes of red and green silk, with an embroidered broadcloth chest panel and yellow broadcloth panels on the sleeves.

The beautiful supplementary weft motifs on this Zeme Naga man's shawl are also inspired by nature. The main motif, woven here in red, green, black and pale orange, is named 'tewyine pui' after the paddy bug insect. The line of dots in the orange bands, formed by floating supplementary warps, is called 'hega mik' (crab's eye).

Zeme Naga shawl, highly decorated with supplementary weft, embroidery and orchid stems. This type of shawl would only be worn on special occasions by important men in society.

The embroidered triangle motif is called 'Ngaikie', and together these motifs represent a group of swallows in flight, called 'Ngaine'.

Probably collected 1937 - 1942. (1946.7.33.1).

In September we had another fantastic virtual session, this time meeting members of the Zeme Naga community in Manipur, India. It really means so much to connect with people this way, and to ensure that our work is relevant and useful for the communities today. Thank you to everyone involved!

Showcasing the details on this girl's taqsireh jacket from Bethlehem. Foliate patterns and borders are couched in twisted silk yarn, and leaves are filled in with satin stitch. The cord trimming is braided with metallic gold thread. (1967.28.2)

Girl's taqsireh (short-sleeved jacket) of red broadcloth with Bethlehem couching in silk yarn.

The Bethlehem taqsireh was worn by village women throughout Southern Palestine, over their long-sleeved dresses. The style is thought to have been influenced by the uniforms of military officials.

Bethlehem, before 1887.
1967.28.2

Another piece we viewed with the community is this Ao Naga body cloth, worn by a man who has sacrificed mithun like his father.

We learnt that the triple diamond motif is called ‘cucumber seeds’, signifying purity, and that the motif with the two opposing triangles is called ‘jabilee’, named after the old iron currency and indicating wealth.

Collected on 20th September 1922 from Longjang village. 1928.69.709.

It was wonderful to meet (virtually) with members of the Ao Naga community recently. We were able to share live views of textiles and gain insights into how they were made and who would have worn them.

This is one cloth we looked at - a rongsüsü, bought in Changtongya in November 1922, and symbolising three generations of wealth. The tasseled fringes are made of hair from the Nagaland Long Hair Goat.
(1953.10.44)

🔎Jewel beetles live up to their name even under magnification🔍
Their wing cases (and sometimes the whole bodies) are often seen being used to decorate historical Naga textiles such as this Zeme Naga breast-apron.

1923.13.4
Zeme Naga cultural group
Collected by Leslie Waterfield Shakespear in 1923

Crossing continents and several time zones, Talking Threads team were very fortunate and honoured to meet the Lotha Naga textile designer and weaver Mrs Abeni TCK Lotha on screen in July. In the meeting Mrs Abeni told us about her design, inspirations and traditional cultural values reflected in her work, while we viewed some of her textiles collection.