Traditional Crafts of Saudi Arabia

Author(s): John Topham

Source: Archaeology, Vol. 39, No. 1 (January/February 1986), pp. 54-57
Published by: Archaeological Institute of America
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/41730299
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 ARCHAEOLOGY NEWS
Traditional Crafts of Saudi Arabia
by John Topham

and the Mediterranean world. By the

The old stereotype of the Arabian penin- thefourteenth and fifteenth centuries
seventh-century b.c. the Arabic lang-
sula as an isolated and culturally barren a.D., the tribal polities of Arabia re-
region of nomads with no connection touage had spread southward through mained peripherally under the sway of
the outside world until the seventh- the peninsula and the kingdoms of the Ottoman Empire until its dissolution
southern Arabia, dominated by Saba
century Islamic conquests has in recent after the First World War, except the
(Sheba), were drawn into the orbit of
years been crumbling under the weight a and south-central Hijaz were usu-
Najd
of modern scholarship. Archaeological general Middle Eastern civilization.ally independent. In 1926 ibn-Saud,
discoveries at Petra (see pages 18-25), Like other Middle Eastern regions a
Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are setting part of western Arabia was absorbed (Left) This bag for storing coffee beans
Arabia firmly in the context of worldinto the Roman Empire, which created and spices is made of braided leather
history. In the first millennium b.c., Provincia Arabia in A.D. 195. With the with wool tassels and a cotton band.
when parts of Arabia were conquered by weakening of Rome's commercial power Lengthy approximately 30 centimeters
the Assyrian Empire and large-scale do- Mecca, Yathrib (Madina) and Ta'if plus fringe . (Right) This woman's head-
mestication of the camel led to the de- became even more important trading piece, made before 1940 , has a wool
velopment of long-range caravans, the cities, and Mecca was a preeminent re- core covered with woven leather and is
peninsula's position between the Red ligious center well before the time adorned
of with leather braids and metal
Sea and the Persian Gulf made it a Mohammed. After the Ottoman T'irks beads. Diameter, approximately 21.5
conquered most of the Middle East in
cross-roads of trade between Asia, Africa centimeters.

54 ARCHAEOLOGY

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Sultan of Najd and its Dependencies, produced wares of superior quality. Per-ouin and village culture, one of the major
conquered the Hijaz coastal region andhaps the best examples of Arabic craftsgoals of this first comprehensive exhibi-
the two areas were formally consolidatedare textiles, but paradoxically these aretion of Saudi crafts is to encourage more
into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia the least celebrated and the least col- people to become concerned with pre-
in 1932. lected. In the late 1970s, when I was liv-
serving extant examples of traditional
Throughout this 2,000-year period ing in Saudi Arabia as manager of a large artifacts, which in Saudi Arabia as
Arabia remained less affected by out-construction project and had become elsewhere in the developing world are
side influences than any Middle Eastern interested in traditional Arab crafts, now the threatened with extinction by
region. As Westernization and seculari- curator of the Textile Museum in Wash- machine-made products of metals and
zation advanced in the nineteenth and ington, DC urged me to collect as manyother plastics.
twentieth centuries Arabia actually re- samples of weaving as I could in the Traditional Crafts of Saudi Arabia
inforced the Islamic character of its so- Arabian peninsula, pointing out that displays over 200 objects including tent
ciety. Even more basically, it continuedthe area represented the widest gap in fabrics, rugs, saddle bags and other
to maintain the socio-economic struc- knowledge of world textiles. camel trappings, weapons, clothing,
ture created thousands of years beforeThe extent to which my wanderings jewelry, and domestic items. All the ob-
by the Neolithic revolution, which pro- (and those of others) have helped to filljects and their uses reflect the Arabian
duced not only a pattern of villages sup- that gap and to enrich our knowledge ofbedouin/ villager way of life.
ported by oasis agriculture but also its traditional Arab workmanship is dem-
opposite: a population of nomadic onstrated in Traditional Crafts of Saudi(Top left) Except in remote areas women
herdsmen whose seasonal following of Arabia, an exhibition organized by my-still cover their faces. The cotton and
their flocks was punctuated by visits to self with the help of the Memorial Artmetal mask decorated with coins is
the villages. There they bartered camels, Gallery of Rochester, New York and cir-dated before 1950 . Lengthy approxi-
sheep and their products- hides, wool culated to seven other museums by themately 23 centimeters. (Bottom left)
and butter and camel transport- in re- Smithsonian Institution TVaveling Ex- The bracelets of high-grade silver and
turn for coffee, dates, spices, metalwork, hibition Service ( Sites ). It is currentlycoral are over 60 years old. Diameter,
and weapons. showing at the University Museum of approximately eight centimeters.
For thousands of years townsfolk and the University of Pennsylvania in Phila-(Below) The wool and goat-hair "qatah"
bedouin (desert people) have practiced delphia and will be on direct loan thereor curtain divided the tenťs male sec-
craftsmanship appropriate to their loca- until January 1987. In addition to pro- tion from the sleeping area. Length ,
tions. Metalsmiths and leather workers viding a fascinating glimpse into bed-approximately 5.2 meters.

Januaiy/February 1986 55

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 The Camel bian coffee paraphernalia are on display personal wealth and a symbol of her
in the exhibit. married status. Wealthier women wore
Perhaps the image most commonly Incense, a major source of Arab wealth gold and precious stones while nomadic
associated with the Arab is the camel- for several millennia, is still widely used
women and less affluent villagers wore
still a symbol of status and prestige to perfume houses and- especially after silver and semiprecious stones. Tur-
even in the era of the automobile and a meal- clothing. Incense burners were quoise, coral, amber, agate, and glass
pickup truck. The exhibition features a made of sheet metal in the traditional were combined with silver and deco-
lifesized camel and examples of all the shape of an inverted pyramid mounted rated with the geometric designs typical
accoutrements for both animal and rider on four legs to a pyramid shape, of Arab art. The past tense is appropri-
or driver. The camel bag, one of the few There is great similarity in the weav- ate for these descriptions, for Arabs
richly adorned possessions of the Arab ing of both bedouin and oasis peoplenow of prefer modern gold jewelry and few
male, is woven of bright-colored wool, the great desert areas in both design silversmiths
and are practicing in Saudi
often with leather reinforcement, and toughness. In Asir, which is a farming Arabia today. Some of these have soaked
with rows of sashes and tassels that and sheep-raising area, the rugs are soft their silver in acid to make it shiny
sometimes hang down to the ground. wools for use in houses. Basketwork and white and presumably more attractive
Halter and single rein are also woven pottery are commonly made in villages, to both Arabs and tourists.
or braided of wool or leather and the but little used by the bedouin because
saddle, a frame of tamarisk wood with they are not durable enough for the Weaving styles
sheepskin or other cushions, is highly tough nomadic life. The preeminent craft of both village and
decorated with hammered metal pegs. Weapons of various types were inte- desert Saudi Arabia, and probably the
The leather or cloth miraka placed in gral to the Arab male lifestyle as much one least affected by outside influences
front of the saddle as a leg cushion has for "show" as for use. Silver handles is andweaving. Both the traditional geomet-
tassels sometimes falling to the ground. silver, brass or leather sheaths for ric the patterns and the horizontal ground
The bentwood litter used by women and daggers attached to the belt and worn loom have been retained, although the
children is decorated with blankets and horizontally across the abdomen were latter was initially necessary only for
fringe to provide privacy and distinction. decorated, as were the long curved bedouin women because of its porta-
Another cornerstone of Arab life is swords (now used only in ceremonialbility. In al Hasa oasis the weavers
coffee, with all the equipment and cere- dances) and the spears that bedouin stillemploy more complex two- and four-
mony that accompany its preparation carried at the turn of the century.harness By pit looms, and their products
and serving. Coffee beans are stored that time almost every Arab male owned often combine twill and tapestry weaves
in a highly decorated drawstring bag, a rifle. Not well suited to Arab mounted in the same fabric as well as the very
roasted in a longhandled pan, and cooled warfare, these highly embellished weap-fine cloaks, the bisht, worn by men.
in a wooden tray called a mubarrad. A ons were used mostly for hunting, The tapestries in the exhibition rep-
resent local variations of the dominant
brass mortar and pestle is used to grind In Arab society the wearing of jewelry
the coffee and its inevitable accompa- was almost exclusively the province of
niment- cardamom seed. As many as women. A pendant of metal or glass
The qiladah, a pendant necklace of tur-
three tinned brass or copper long spouted worn on the bridge of the nose signified
pots are used in the making of coffee, an unmarried girl; jewelry paid as part quoise, coral and glass from the 1930s ,
which is strained through palm fibers of a bridal settlement ( some pieces wereis from the Najd region. Length ,
placed in the spouts. Examples of Ara- made from coins) became a woman's approximately 42 centimeters .

56 ARCHAEOLOGY

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(Right) This rare example of copper
ware made in Mecca shows both Islamic
and bedouin design. Diameter, approxi-
mately 23 centimeters . (Far right) The
mubarrad, a tray for cooling roasted
coffee beans , has wooden with brass
tacks and rings and was crafted in
southwest Arabia before 1900. Length ,
approximately 25.5 centimeters.

style- stripes and bands running the

features such as the floor length gowns, single ankle-length shirt called a thob
long sleeves and loose fit that permits
length of the fabric woven with the warp- with a mandarin or Western collar, usu-
face plain weave technique and crossthe circulation of air. Sleeves were often ally white and long sleeved, covered with
bands in tapestry weave. In the strict wing-like, and tied behind the woman's a square mantle or bisht. Traditional
Islamic tradition, figures are geometricneck while she works. Dresses are dec- male headdress is a cloth or gutrah held
and people and animals are seldom de- orated with appliqué, embroidery, but- in place by a double length of cord and
picted. Red, black, white, and camel tons, beads, and appliqué. Formerly died falling over the shoulders. Martial dis-
color are used in various combinations with indigo, they are black, dark green plays such as cartridge belts, daggers
with green, blue and orange. or red, while the ' abãya or cloak worn and other weapons are now worn only on
Some of the most striking textiles in in public is invariably black. ceremonial occasions and in some dances.
the exhibition are tent fabrics. These are Covering a woman's head is as impor- Long the Middle Eastern country
usually black, the color of the Arabian tant in Saudi Arabia as covering her face most resistant to Western influences and
goat hair used in their weaving. Outer (now with a veil or a face mask made of still opposed to them, oil-rich Saudi
tent walls are little adorned, but the pan- black gauze). In many regions unmarried Arabia is being increasingly and inex-
els used as tent dividers have colored girls wear bukhnuqs, openfaced hoods orably exposed to the forces of change
stripes and tassels. extending down their backs; after mar- through the process of urbanization.
Textiles used for clothing are now fre- riage these are replaced by black shawls A century ago perhaps half the coun-
quently machine woven and stitched, or head cloths decorated with embroi- try's population was nomadic or semi-
but this has not yet significantly altered dery and buttons, beads or shells. nomadic; today this has been reduced
the style of Arab dress, which contin- to less than one-fifth. The age-old cus-
ues to display many regional variations. Both men and women wear sandals tom of offsetting desert austerity with
These are unified, however, by common called n'al and in winter soft leather brightly colored and patterned objects
shoes with wool linings. Western-style is still active, but the traditional crafts
shoes have become popular, but manywith indiginous dyes and materials are
Traditional Arab costumes are displayed bedouin women still go barefoot. Under- vanishing. Traditional Crafts of Saudi
on life-sized mannequins for maximum garments of both men and women are Arabia offers visitors a rich harvest from
visibility and realism at Memorial Art now often Western-style. that tradition: there is still time to see a
Gallery, Rochester. Typical male costume consists of a fully-caparisoned camel in Philadelphia.

January/February 1986 57

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