Author
Unknown
Publication Date
1800
Publication Place
Egypt (made) -
Subject
Jewellery Africa Metalwork
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Physical Dimensions
Length: 6.5cm
Library
Victoria and Albert Museum
Library Asset ID
1116-1869
Record ID
1116-1869
Library Location
Middle East Section
Date
1800
Notes
This gilded silver tube was part of the traditional jewellery of urban women in Egypt in the 19th century. It was used with a face veil or burqu . The Egyptian veil worn by lower class Moslem women at that time consisted of a long rectangle of black cloth, made of an openwork panel of crocheted cotton or pierced crepe, about 15-20 cm wide. It had strings attached at either side of the top edge which were tied at the back of the head. A third string, which ran over the top of the head, was attached to the centre of the top edge to prevent the veil from slipping down. This tube was strung on the centre thread where it joined the veil, over the bridge of the nose. Face veils became unfashionable after Egyptian independence in 1922, and with them these tubes also became obsolete.
Tarihsel bağlam
p177 - The 'Arusa of the Burqu' - This piece of jewelry, made of gold, silver dipped in gold, or yellow brass, is a sort of short tube with thin wires wound around its entire length forming beautiful designs, with three discs encircling thr lower, middle and top parts. Its purpose is to hold up the strings that are tied at the back of the head to keep in place the burqu', or veil; the latter is made of crinkly black silk or a lacy type of cloth, manufactured in al-Mahalla al-Kubra, the textile center of Egypt. The metal from which it is fashioned depends on the wealth of the user. It could be made of silver, gold, gold-plated metal or even brass ... It is called a 'arusa ('doll') because of the shimmer of the gold or brass against the black of the veil. p180 - The use of the burqu' was widespread among women of the Sha'bi classes until the early twentieth century. The women of the middle and upper classes had the veil (the Turkish-style yashmak), but when the women's liberation movement, headed by Huda Shaarawi, encouraged women to do away with the veil, women of the Sha'bi classes also gave up their burqu' and the 'doll' gradually disappeared. Enchanted Jewelry of Egypt: The Traditional Art and Craft , Azza Fahmy, 2007
Malzemeler ve teknikler
Silver-gilt wire wrapped round sheet silver Silver-Gilt Filigree
Fiziksel açıklama
Cylinder of gilded sheet silver, open at each end, which is entirely covered with very fine wire wrapped round the outside. The wrapped wire is interrupted in three places by a ring of sheet metal with a serrated edge standing out at right angles to the cylinder. The wrapped wire in the two spaces between the three rings is decorated by two bands of plain sheet metal and a central band of gallery wire. The wire ends of the cylinder are slightly frayed.
