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Only one kind of stitch is used in making Palestinian
embroidered dresses, but the patterns and colors used for
these dresses vary. The color combinations of the
embroidery, the design and the color of the cloth on which
the embroidery is made have specific connotations as to the
specific region in Palestine, where the article was made or
the status of the person owning or wearing the article. (In
the case of women’s dresses, called Thobes, the
status may be a new bride, an older mother, a pregnant wife,
etc.) Also, one can determine where a Palestinian woman
comes from through the patterns of the embroidery on her
dress; almost each Palestinian town has its own unique
pattern. Palestinian embroidery is therefore more than just
an art or a craft; it is an integral part of the Palestinian
geographical and cultural landscape.
While many of the patterns used in Palestinian embroidery
are designs of geometric shapes, they also include designs,
which were most familiar to Palestinian women as impressions
of their daily surroundings. Depending on the region in
Palestine, the patterns included representations of cypress
tree, bunches of grapes, apple tree, cauliflower, cock,
pigeon, rainbow, roses, birds, flower pot and extensive
other such representations. Geometric designs were given
such names as 'foreign moon', 'cow's eye', 'mill wheel',
‘crab’, 'moon with feathers', 'old man's teeth', 'bachelor's
cushion', the baker's wife', 'old man upside down' and other
such creative and often humorous names.
Palestinian embroidery did not, with rare exceptions,
include patterns with any religious symbols. While the
majority of Palestinians are Moslems, there hasn’t been any
obvious Islamic representations in embroidery as there has
been in other forms of art such as calligraphy. Because
Christian minorities in Palestine have enjoyed essentially
full societal partnership with the Moslem majority,
Christian minorities did not find it necessary nor desirable
to separate themselves from their Moslem brothers as did
Christians in some other Arab countries, nor deliberately
made themselves stand out as non-Moslems. In Palestinian
society, religion was a private matter between 'man and his
God'. A phrase which was very popular in Palestinian society
during all of the twentieth century was "Religion is for
God, but the country is for everyone" (Aldeenu Lillah
Walwatan Liljamee') which meant that no one wanted the
differences in religious beliefs to impact societal
relations among Palestinians. Therefore, Palestinian
Christians and Moslems did not use embroidery as a form of
public display to separate them from each other.
Nonetheless, Christian minorities have made embroidered
articles with Christian representations for use exclusively
in their homes or for the exclusive use in their churches
for religious rituals and ceremonial purposes.
Arabs, both Christians and Moslems, and Jews lived in
harmony in Palestine until the Zionist movement came into
being and started to threaten the livelihood, hopes and
existence of the Arab population. |
