DRESS. Arabic libās (لـبـاس). Decent apparel at the time of public worship is enjoined in the Qurʾān, Sūrah vii. 29: “O children of Adam! wear your goodly apparel when ye repair to any mosque.” Excess
in apparel and extravagance in dress are reproved, Sūrah vii. 25: “We (God) have sent down raiment to hide your nakedness, and splendid garments;
but the raiment of piety, this is the best.”
According to the Hidāyah (vol. iv. p. 92), a dress of silk is not lawful for men, but women are permitted
to wear it. Men are prohibited from wearing gold ornaments, and also ornaments of
silver, otherwise than a silver signet ring. The custom of keeping handkerchiefs in
the hand, except for necessary use, is also forbidden.
The following are some of the sayings of the Prophet with regard to dress, as recorded
in the Traditions. Mishkāt, xx. c. i.: “God will not look at him on the Day of Resurrection who shall wear long
garments from pride.” “Whoever wears a silken garment in this world shall not wear
it in the next.” “God will not have compassion upon him who wears long trousers (i.e. below the ankle) from pride.” “It is lawful for the women of my people to wear silks
and gold ornaments, but it is unlawful for the men.” “Wear white clothes, because
they are the cleanest, and the most agreeable; and bury your dead in white clothes.”
According to the Traditions, the dress of Muḥammad was exceedingly simple. It is
said he used to wear only two garments, the izār, or “under garment” which hung down three or four inches below his knees, and a mantle
thrown over his shoulders. These two robes, with the turban, and white cotton drawers,
completed the Prophet’s wardrobe. His dress was generally of white, but he also wore
green, red, and yellow, and sometimes a black woollen dress. It is said by some traditionists
that in the taking of Makkah he wore a black turban. The end of his turban used to
hang between his shoulders. And he used to wrap it many times round his head. It is
said, “the edge of it appeared below like the soiled clothes of an oil dealer.”
He was especially fond of white-striped yamanī cloth. He once prayed in a silken dress,
but he cast it aside afterwards, saying, “it doth not become the faithful to wear
silk.” He once prayed in a spotted mantle, but the spots diverted his attention, and
the garment was never again worn.
His sleeves, unlike those of the Eastern choga or k͟haftān, ended at the wrist, and he never wore long robes reaching to his ankles.
At first, he wore a gold ring with the stone inwards on his right hand, but it distracted
his attention when preaching, and he changed it for a silver one. His shoes, which
were often old and cobbled, were of the Ḥaẓramaut pattern, with two thongs. And
he was in the habit of praying with his shoes on. [SHOES.]
The example of Muḥammad has doubtless influenced the customs of his followers in the matter of dress, the fashion of which has remained
almost the same in eastern Muḥammadan countries centuries past; for although there
are varieties of dress in Eastern as well as in European countries, still there are
one or two characteristics of dress which are common to all oriental nations which
have embraced Islām, namely, the turban folded round the head, the white cotton drawers,
or full trousers, tied round the waist by a running string; the qamīs, or “shirt,” the k͟haftān, or “coat,” and the lungī, or “scarf.” The qamīṣ is the same as the ketoneth of the Hebrews, and the χίτων of the Greeks, a kind of long shirt with short sleeves, the ends of which extend
over the trousers or drawers, reaching below the knees. The k͟haftān answers to the Hebrew מְעִיל meil (1 Sam. xviii. 4), a tunic worn as an outer garment. The Jewish בֶּגֶד beged, or שִׂמְלָה simlah, must have been similar to the quadrangular piece of cloth still worn as a scarf in Central Asia, and called
a lungī, and similar to the ʿabāʾ of the Egyptians. It is worn in various ways, either wrapped round the body, or worn
over the shoulders, and sometimes folded as a covering for the head.
The dress of Muḥammadans in Egypt is very minutely described by Mr. Lane in his Modern Egyptians, vol. i. p. 36.
The dress of the men of the middle and higher classes of Egypt consists of the following
articles. First a pair of full drawers of linen or cotton tied round the body by a
running string or band, the ends of which are embroidered with coloured silks, though
concealed by the outer dress. The drawers descend a little below the knees or to the
ankles; but many of the Arabs will not wear long drawers, because prohibited by the
Prophet. Next is worn a qamīs or “shirt,” with very full sleeves, reaching to the wrist; it is made of linen of
a loose open texture, or of cotton stuff, or of muslin, or silk, or of a mixture of
silk and cotton in strips, but all white. Over this, in winter, or in cool weather,
most persons wear a sudeyree, which [93]is a short vest of cloth, or of striped coloured silk, or cotton, without sleeves.
Over the shirt and the sudeyree, or the former alone, is worn a long vest of striped silk or cotton (called kaftān) descending to the ankles, with long sleeves extending a few inches beyond the fingers’
ends, but divided from a point a little above the wrist, or about the middle of the
fore-arm, so that the hand is generally exposed, though it may be concealed by the
sleeve when necessary, for it is customary to cover the hands in the presence of a
person of high rank. Round this vest is wound the girdle, which is a coloured shawl,
or a long piece of white-figured muslin.
The ordinary outer robe is a long cloth coat, of any colour, called by the Turks jubbah, but by the Egyptians gibbeh, the sleeves of which reach not quite to the wrist. Some persons also wear a beneesh, which is a robe of cloth with long sleeves, like those of the kaftān, but more ample; it is properly a robe of ceremony, and should be worn over the other
cloth coat, but many persons wear it instead of the gibbeh.
Another robe, called farageeyeh, nearly resembles the beneesh; it has very long sleeves, but these are not slit, and it is chiefly worn by men
of the learned professions. In cold or cool weather, a kind of black woollen cloak,
called abāyeh, is commonly worn. Sometimes this is drawn over the head.
In winter, also, many persons wrap a muslin or other shawl (such as they use for a
turban) about the head and shoulders. The head-dress consists, first, of a small close-fitting
cotton cap, which is often changed; next a tarboosh, which is a red cloth cap, also fitting close to the head with a tassel of dark-blue
silk at the crown; lastly, a long piece of white muslin, generally figured, or a kashmere
shawl, which is wound round the tarboosh. Thus is formed the turban. The kashmere shawl is seldom worn except in cool weather.
Some persons wear two or three tarbooshes one over another. A shereef (or descendant
of the Prophet) wears a green turban, or is privileged to do so, but no other person;
and it is not common for any but a shereef to wear a bright green dress. Stockings are not in use, but some
few persons in cold weather wear woollen or cotton socks. The shoes are of thick red
morocco, pointed, and turning up at the toes. Some persons also wear inner shoes of
soft yellow morocco, and with soles of the same; the outer shoes are taken off on
stepping upon a carpet or mat, but not the inner; for this reason the former are often
worn turned down at the heel.
The costume of the men of the lower orders is very simple. These, if not of the very
poorest class, wear a pair of drawers, and a long and full shirt or gown of blue linen
or cotton, or of brown woollen stuff, open from the neck nearly to the waist, and
having wide sleeves. Over this some wear a white or red woollen girdle; for which
servants often substitute a broad red belt of woollen stuff or of leather, generally
containing a receptacle for money. Their turban is generally composed of a white,
red, or yellow woollen shawl, or of a piece of coarse cotton or muslin wound round
a tarboosh, under which is a white or brown felt cap; but many are so poor, as to
have no other cap than the latter, no turban, nor even drawers, nor shoes, but only
the blue or brown shirt, or merely a few rags, while many, on the other hand, wear
a sudeyree under the blue shirt, and some, particularly servants in the houses of great men,
wear a white shirt, a sudeyree, and a kaftān, or gibbeh, or both, and the blue shirt
over all. The full sleeves of this shirt are sometimes drawn up by means of a cord,
which [94]passes round each shoulder and crosses behind, where it is tied in a knot. This custom
is adopted by servants (particularly grooms), who have cords of crimson or dark blue
silk for this purpose.
In cold weather, many persons of the lower classes wear an abayeh, like that before
described, but coarser and sometimes (instead of being black) having broad stripes,
brown and white, or blue and white, but the latter rarely. Another kind of cloak,
more full than the abayeh, of black or deep blue woollen stuff, is also very commonly
worn, it is called diffeeyeh. The shoes are of red or yellow morocco, or of sheep-skin.
Those of the groom are of dark red morocco. Those of the door-keeper and the water-carrier
of a private house, generally yellow.
The Muslims are distinguished by the colours of their turbans from the Copts and the
Jews, who (as well as other subjects of the Turkish Sultān who are not Muslims) wear
black, blue, gray, or light-brown turbans, and generally dull-coloured dresses.
The distinction of sects, families, dynasties, &c., among the Muslim Arabs by the
colour of the turban and other articles of dress, is of very early origin. There are
not many different forms of turbans now worn in Egypt; that worn by most of the servants
is peculiarly formal, consisting of several spiral twists one above another like the
threads of a screw. The kind common among the middle and higher classes of the tradesmen
and other citizens of the metropolis and large towns is also very formal, but less
so than that just before alluded to.
The Turkish turban worn in Egypt is of a more elegant fashion. The Syrian is distinguished by its width. The Ulama and men of religion and letters in general used to wear,
as some do still, one particularly wide and formal called a mukleh. The turban is
much respected. In the houses of the more wealthy classes, there is usually a chair
on which it is placed at night. This is often sent with the furniture of a bride;
as it is common for a lady to have one upon which to place her head-dress. It is never
used for any other purpose.
The dress of the women of the middle and higher orders is handsome and elegant. Their
shirt is very full, like that of the men, but shorter, not reaching to the knees;
it is also, generally, of the same kind of material as the men’s shirt, or of coloured
crape, sometimes black. A pair of very wide trousers (called shintiyān) of a coloured striped stuff, of silk and cotton, or of printed or plain white muslin,
is tied round the hips under the shirt, with a dikkeh; its lower extremities are drawn
up and tied just below the knee with running strings, but it is sufficiently long
to hang down to the feet, or almost to the ground, when attached in this manner. Over
the shirt and shintiyān is worn a long vest (called yelek), of the same material as the latter; it nearly resembles the kaftān of the men,
but is more tight to the body and arms; the sleeves also are longer, and it is made
to button down the front from the bosom to a little below the girdle, instead of lapping
over; it is open, likewise on each side, from the height of the hip downwards.
In general, the yelek is cut in such a manner as to leave half of the bosom uncovered,
except by the shirt, but many ladies have it made more ample at that part, and according
to the most approved fashion it should be of sufficient length to reach to the ground,
or should exceed that length by two or three inches or more. A short vest (called
anteree) reaching only a little below the waist, and exactly resembling a yelek of which
the lower part has been cut off, is sometimes worn instead of the latter. A square
shawl, or an embroidered kerchief, doubled diagonally, is put loosely round the waist
as a girdle, the two corners that are folded together hanging down behind; or sometimes
the lady’s girdle is folded after the ordinary Turkish fashion, like that of the men,
but more loosely.
Over the yelek is worn a gibbeh of cloth or velvet or silk, usually embroidered with
gold or with coloured silk; it differs in form from the gibbeh of the men, chiefly
in being not so wide, particularly in the fore part, and is of the same length as
the yelek. Instead of this, a jacket (called saltah), generally of cloth or velvet, and embroidered in the same manner as the gibbeh,
is often worn.
The head-dress consists of a takeeyeh and tarboosh, with a square kerchief (called
faroodeeyeh) of printed or painted muslin or one of crape, wound tightly round, composing what
is called a rabtah. Two or more such kerchiefs were commonly used a short time since,
and still are sometimes to form the ladies’ turban, but always wound in a high flat
shape, very different from that of the turban of the men. A kind of crown, called
kurs, and other ornaments, are attached to the ladies’ head-dress. A long piece of white
muslin, embroidered at each end with coloured silks [95]and gold, or of coloured crape ornamented with gold thread, &c., and spangles, rests
upon the head, and hangs down behind, nearly or quite to the ground; this is called
tarhah, it is the head-veil; the face-veil I shall presently describe. The hair, except
over the forehead and temples, is divided into numerous braids or plaits, generally
from eleven to twenty-five in number, but always of an uneven number; these hang down
the back. To each braid of hair are usually added three black silk cords with little
ornaments of gold, &c., attached to them. Over the forehead the hair is cut rather
short, but two full locks hang down on each side of the face; these are often curled
in ringlets and sometimes plaited.
Few of the ladies of Egypt wear stockings or socks, but many of them wear mezz (or
inner shoes) of yellow or red morocco, sometimes embroidered with gold. Over these,
whenever they step off the matted or carpeted part of the floor, they put on baboog
(or slippers) of yellow morocco, with high-pointed toes, or use high wooden clogs
or pattens, generally from four to nine inches in height, and usually ornamented with
mother-of-pearl or silver, &c.
The riding or walking attire is called tezyeereh. Whenever a lady leaves the house, she wears, in addition to what has been above
described, first, a large, loose gown (called tob or sebleh), the sleeves of which are nearly equal in width to the whole length of the gown;
it is of silk, generally of a pink or rose or violet colour. Next is put on the burkaʾ
or face-veil, which is a long strip of white muslin, concealing the whole of the face
except the eyes, and reaching nearly to the feet. It is suspended at the top by a
narrow band, which passes up the forehead, and which is sewed, as are also the two
upper corners of the veil, to a band that is tied round the head. The lady then covers
herself with a habarah, which, for a married lady, is composed of two breadths of
glossy, black silk, each ell-wide, and three yards long; these are sewed together,
at or near the selvages (according to the height of the person) the seam running horizontally,
with respect to the manner in which it is worn; a piece of narrow black ribbon is
sewed inside the upper part, about six inches from the edge, to tie round the head.
But some of them imitate the Turkish ladies of Egypt in holding the front part so
as to conceal all but that portion of the veil that is above the hands. The unmarried
ladies wear a habarah of white silk, or a shawl. Some females of the middle classes,
who cannot afford to purchase a habarah, wear instead of it an eezār (izār), which is a piece of white calico, of the same form and size as the former, and
is worn in the same manner. On the feet are worn short boots or socks (called khuff), of yellow morocco, and over these the baboog. The dress of a large proportion of
those women of the lower orders who are not of the poorest class, consists of a pair
of trousers or drawers [96](similar in form to the shintiyān of the ladies, but generally of plain white cotton
or linen), a blue linen or cotton shirt (not quite so full as that of the men), reaching
to the feet, a burkaʾ of a kind of coarse black crape, and a dark blue tarhah of muslin
or linen. Some wear, over the long shirt, or instead of the latter, a linen tob, of
the same form as that of the ladies; and within the long shirt, some wear a short
white shirt; and some, a sudeyree also, or an anteree. The sleeves of the tob are
often turned up over the head; either to prevent their being incommodious, or to supply
the place of a tarhah. In addition to these articles of dress, many women who are
not of the very poor classes wear, as a covering, a kind of plaid, similar in form
to the habarah, composed of two pieces of cotton, woven in small chequers of blue
and white, or cross stripes, with a mixture of red at each end. It is called milayeh; in general it is worn in the same manner as the habarah, but sometimes like the
tarhah. The upper part of the black burkaʾ is often ornamented with false pearls,
small gold coins, and other little flat ornaments of the same metal (called bark); sometimes with a coral bead, and a gold coin beneath; also with some coins of base
silver and more commonly with a pair of chain tassels of brass or silver (called oyoon) attached to the corners. A square black silk kerchief (called asbeh), with a border of red and yellow, is bound round the head, doubled diagonally, and
tied with a single knot behind; or, instead of this, the tarboosh and faroodeeyeh
are worn, though by very few women of the lower classes.
The best kind of shoes worn by the females of the lower orders are of red morocco,
turned up, but generally round, at the toes. The burkaʾ and shoes are most common
in Cairo, and are also worn by many of the women throughout lower Egypt; but in Upper
Egypt, the burkaʾ is very seldom seen, and shoes are scarcely less uncommon. To supply
the place of the former, when necessary, a portion of the tarhah is drawn before the
face, so as to conceal nearly all the countenance except one eye.
Many of the women of the lower orders, even in the metropolis, never conceal their
faces.
Throughout the greater part of Egypt, the most common dress of the women, merely consists
of the blue shirt or tob and tarhah. In the southern parts of Upper Egypt chiefly
above Akhmeem, most of the women envelop themselves in a large piece of dark-brown
woollen stuff (called a hulāleeyeh), wrapping it round the body and attaching the upper parts together over each shoulder,
and a piece of the same they use as a tarhah. This dull dress, though picturesque,
is almost as disguising as the blue tinge which women in these parts of Egypt impart
to their lips. Most of the women of the lower orders wear a variety of trumpery ornaments,
such as ear-rings, necklaces, bracelets, &c., and sometimes a nose-ring.
The women of Egypt deem it more incumbent upon them to cover the upper and back part
of the head than the face, and more requisite to conceal the face than most other
parts of the person. I have often seen women but half covered with miserable rags,
and several times females in the prime of womanhood, and others in more advanced age,
with nothing on the body but a narrow strip of rag bound round the hips.
Mr. Burckhardt, in his Notes on the Bedouins and Wahabys (p. 47), thus describes the dress of the Badawīs of the desert:—
In summer the men wear a coarse cotton shirt, over which the wealthy put a kombar, or “long gown,” as it is worn in Turkish towns, of silk or cotton stuff. Most of
them, however, do not wear the kombar, but simply wear over their shirt a woollen mantle. There are different sorts of
mantles, one very thin, light, and white woollen, manufactured at Bag͟hdād, and called
mesoumy. A coarser and heavier kind, striped white and brown (worn over the mesoumy), is
called abba. The Bag͟hdād abbas are most esteemed, those made at Hamah, with short wide sleeves,
are called boush. (In the northern parts of Syria, every kind of woollen mantle, whether white, black,
or striped white and brown, or white and blue, are called meshlakh.) I have not seen any black abbas among the Aenezes, but frequently among the sheikhs of Ahl el Shemal, sometimes interwoven with gold, and worth as much as ten pounds
sterling. The Aenezes do not wear drawers; they walk and ride usually barefooted,
even the richest of [97]them, although they generally esteem yellow boots and red shoes. All the Bedouins
wear on the head, instead of the red Turkish cap, a turban or square kerchief, of
cotton or cotton and silk mixed; the turban is called keffie; this they fold about the head so that one corner falls backward, and two other corners
hang over the fore part of the shoulders; with these two corners they cover their
faces to protect them from the sun’s rays, or hot wind, or rain, or to conceal their
features if they wish to be unknown. The keffie is yellow or yellow mixed with green. Over the keffie the Aenezes tie, instead of a turban, a cord round the head; this cord is of camel’s
hair, and called akal. Some tie a handkerchief about the head, and it is then called shutfe. A few rich sheikhs wear shawls on their heads of Damascus or Bag͟hdād manufacture, striped red and white; they sometimes also use red caps or takie (called in Syria tarboush), and under those they wear a smaller cap of camel’s hair, called maaraka (in Syria arkye, where it is generally made of fine cotton stuff).
The Aenezes are distinguished at first sight from all the Syrian Bedouins by the long
tresses of their hair. They never shave their black hair, but cherish it from infancy,
till they can twist it in tresses, that hang over the cheeks down to the breast: these
tresses are called keroun. Some few Aenezes wear girdles of leather, others tie a cord or a piece of rag over
the shirt. Men and women wear from infancy a leather girdle around the naked waist, it consists
of four or five thongs twisted together into a cord as thick as one’s finger. I heard
that the women tie their thongs separated from each other, round the waist. Both men
and women adorn the girdles with pieces of ribands or amulets. The Aenezes called
it hhakou; the Ahl el Shemal call it bereim. In summer the boys, until the age of seven or eight years, go stark naked; but I
never saw any young girl in that state, although it was mentioned that in the interior
of the desert the girls, at that early age, were not more encumbered by clothing than
their little brothers. In winter, the Bedouins wear over the shirt a pelisse, made
of several sheep-skins stitched together; many wear these skins even in summer, because
experience has taught them that the more warmly a person is clothed, the less he suffers
from the sun. The Arabs endure the inclemency of the rainy season in a wonderful manner.
While everything around them suffers from the cold, they sleep barefooted in an open
tent, where the fire is not kept up beyond midnight. Yet in the middle of summer an
Arab sleeps wrapt in his mantle upon the burning sand, and exposed to the rays of
an intensely hot sun. The ladies’ dress is a wide cotton gown of a dark colour, blue,
brown, or black; on their heads they wear a kerchief called shauber or mekroune, the young females having it of a red colour, the old of black. All the Ranalla ladies
wear black silk kerchiefs, two yards square, called shale kās; these are made at Damascus. Silver rings are much worn by the Aeneze ladies, both
in the ears and noses; the ear-rings they call terkie (pl. teraky), the small nose-rings shedre, the larger (some of which are three inches and a half in diameter), khezain. All the women puncture their lips and dye them blue; this kind of tattooing they
call bertoum, and apply it likewise in spotting their temples and foreheads. The Serhhān women
puncture their cheeks, breasts, and arms, and the Ammour women their ankles. Several
men also adorn their arms in the same manner. The Bedouin ladies half cover their
faces with a dark-coloured veil, called nekye, which is so tied as to conceal the chin and mouth. The Egyptian women’s veil (berkoa) is used by the Kebly Arabs. Round their wrists the Aeneze ladies wear glass bracelets
of various colours; the rich also have silver bracelets and some wear silver chains
about the neck. Both in summer and winter the men and women go barefooted.
Captain Burton, in his account of Zanzibar, (vol. i. p. 382), says:—
The Arab’s head-dress is a kummeh or kofiyyāh (red fez), a Surat calotte (afiyyah), or a white skull-cap, worn under a turban (kilemba) of Oman silk and cotton religiously mixed. Usually it is of fine blue and white
cotton check, embroidered and fringed with a broad red border, with the ends hanging
in [98]unequal lengths over one shoulder. The coiffure is highly picturesque. The ruling
family and grandees, however, have modified its vulgar folds, wearing it peaked in
front, and somewhat resembling a tiara. The essential body-clothing, and the succedaneum for trousers is an izor (nguo yaku Chini), or loin-cloth, tucked in at the waist, six to seven feet long by two to three broad.
The colours are brickdust and white, or blue and white, with a silk border striped
red, black, and yellow. The very poor wear a dirty bit of cotton girdled by a hakab or kundāvi, a rope of plaited thongs; the rich prefer a fine embroidered stuff from Oman, supported
at the waist by a silver chain. None but the western Arabs admit the innovation of
drawers (sūrūwali). The jama or upper garment is a collarless coat, of the best broad-cloth, leek-green or some
tender colour being preferred. It is secured over the left breast by a silken loop,
and the straight wide sleeves are gaily lined. The kizbāo is a kind of waistcoat, covering only the bust; some wear it with sleeves, others
without. The dishdashes (in Kisawahili Khanzu), a narrow-sleeved shirt buttoned at the throat, and extending
to midshin, is made of calico (baftah), American drill and other stuffs called doriyāh, tarabuzun, and jamdani. Sailors are known by khuzerangi, a coarse cotton, stained dingy red-yellow, with henna or pomegranate rind, and rank
with wars (bastard saffron) and shark’s oil.
Respectable men guard the stomach with a hizâm, generally a Cashmere or Bombay shawl; others wear sashes of the dust-coloured raw
silk, manufactured in Oman. The outer garment for chilly weather is the long tight-sleeved
Persian jubbeh, jokhah, or caftān, of European broad-cloth. Most men shave their heads, and the Shafeis trim or entirely
remove the moustaches.
The palms are reddened with henna, which is either brought from El Hejāz, or gathered
in the plantations. The only ring is a plain cornelian seal and the sole other ornament
is a talisman (hirz, in Kisawahili Hirizi). The eyes are blackened with kohl, or antimony of El Shām—here, not Syria, but the region about Meccah—and the mouth
crimsoned by betel, looks as if a tooth had just been knocked out.
Dr. Eugene Schuyler, in his work on Turkestan (vol. i. p. 122), says:—
The dress of the Central Asiatic is very simple. He wears loose baggy trousers, usually
made of coarse white cotton stuff fastened tightly round the waist, with a cord and
tassel; this is a necessary article of dress, and is never or rarely taken off, at
all events not in the presence of another. Frequently, when men are at work, this
is the only garment, and in that case it is gradually turned up under the cord, or
rolled up on the legs, so that the person is almost naked. Over this is worn a long
shirt, either white or of some light-coloured print, reaching almost to the feet,
and with a very narrow aperture for the neck, which renders it somewhat difficult
to put the head through. The sleeves are long and loose. Beyond this there is nothing
more but what is called the chapan, varying in number according to the weather, or the whim of the person. The chapan is a loose gown, cut very sloping in the neck, with strings to tie it together in
front; and inordinately large sleeves, made with an immense gore, and about twice
as long as is necessary; exceedingly inconvenient, but useful to conceal the hands,
as Asiatic politeness dictates. In summer, these are usually made of Russian prints,
or of the native alatcha, a striped cotton material, or of silk, either striped or
with most gorgeous eastern patterns, in bright colours, especially red, yellow, and
green. I have sometimes seen men with as many as four or five of these gowns, even
in summer; they say that it keeps out the heat. In winter, one gown will frequently
be made of cloth, and lined with fine lamb-skin or fur. The usual girdle is a large
handkerchief, or a small shawl; at times, a long scarf wound several times tightly
round the waist. The Jews in places under native rule are allowed no girdle, but a
bit of rope or cord, as a mark of ignominy. From the girdle hang the accessory knives
and several small bags and pouches, often prettily embroidered, for combs, money,
&c. On the head there is a skull-cap; these in Tashkent are always embroidered with
silk; in Būkhārā they are usually worked with silk, or worsted in cross-stitch in
gay patterns. The turban, called tchilpetch, or “forty turns,” is very long; and if the wearer has any pretence to elegance,
it should be of fine thin material, which is chiefly imported from England. It requires
considerable experience to wind one properly round the head, so that the folds will
be well made and the appearance fashionable. One extremity is left to fall over the
left shoulder, but is usually, except at prayer time, tucked in over the top. Should
this end be on the right shoulder, it is said to be in the Afghān style. The majority
of turbans are white, particularly so in Tashkent, though white is [99]especially the colour of the mūllāhs and religious people, whose learning is judged by the size of their turbans. In general,
merchants prefer blue, striped, or chequered material.
At home the men usually go barefooted, but on going out wear either a sort of slippers
with pointed toes and very small high heels, or long soft boots, the sole and upper
being made of the same material. In the street, one must in addition put on either
a slipper or golosh, or wear riding-boots made of bright green horse hide, with turned-up
pointed toes and very small high heels.
The dress of the women, in shape and fashion, differs but little from that of the
men, as they wear similar trousers and shirts, though, in addition, they have long
gowns, usually of bright-coloured silk, which extend from the neck to the ground.
They wear an innumerable quantity of necklaces, and little amulets, pendents in their
hair, and ear-rings, and occasionally even a nose-ring. This is by no means so ugly
as is supposed: a pretty girl with a turquoise ring in one nostril is not at all unsightly. On the contrary, there is something
piquant in it. Usually, when outside of the houses, all respectable women wear a heavy
black veil, reaching to their waists, made of woven horse-hair, and over that is thrown
a dark blue, or green khalat, the sleeves of which, tied together at the ends, dangle behind. The theory of this
dull dress is, that the women desire to escape observation, and certainly for that
purpose they have devised the most ugly and unseemly costume that could be imagined.
They are, however, very inquisitive, and occasionally in bye-streets one is able to
get a good glance at them before they pull down their veils.
The dress of the citizens of Persia has been often described, both by ancient and
modern travellers. That of the men has changed very materially within the last century.
The turban, as a head-dress, is now worn by none but the Arabian inhabitants of that
country. The Persians wear a long cap covered with lamb’s wool, the appearance of
which is sometimes improved by being encircled with a cashmere shawl. The inhabitants
of the principal towns are fond of dressing richly. Their upper garments are either
made of chintz, silk, or cloth, and are often trimmed with gold or silver lace; they
also wear brocade; and in winter their clothes are lined with furs, of which they
import a great variety. It is not customary for any person, except the king, to wear
jewels; but nothing can exceed the profusion which he displays of these ornaments;
and his subjects seem peculiarly proud of this part of royal magnificence. They assert
that when the monarch is dressed in his most splendid robes, and is seated in the
sun, that the eye cannot gaze on the dazzling brilliancy of his attire.
