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Unknown Maker, Tunisian

Bridal Veil

Maker

Unknown Maker, Tunisian

Culture

Tunisian

Title

Bridal Veil

Year

early 1900s

Medium

  • Silk twill weave with metal strip embroidery and pulled work

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

  • Silk twill weave with metal strip embroidery and pulled work

Dimensions

39 x 57 cm (15 3/8 x 22 7/16 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Transfer from RISD Textiles department: gift of Mae and Gene Festa from the Mae Festa Textile Collection

Object Number

2017.45.34

Type

  • Costume

Exhibition History

It Comes in Many Forms
Islamic Art from the Collection
Oct 23, 2020 – Dec 18, 2021

Label copy

This veil was made for a Bedouin woman’s wedding ceremony. Figurative and geometric patterns shine in metal atop orange silk on one side and green on the other, complicating the sheer fabric and concealing the bride’s face from onlookers. Birds and fish along the edges symbolize fertility, and below each fleur de lis in the top corners is an abstracted khamsa, or hand-shaped symbol. This ancient protective motif is shared by Islam, Judaism, and pre-Abrahamic religions across North Africa and West Asia. The metal embroidery technique used here was once unique to Jewish populations around the Mediterranean Sea, but within the last century it has become more widely adopted.

Image use

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In copyright This object is in copyright

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, Tunisian
Bridal Veil, early 1900s
Silk twill weave with metal strip embroidery and pulled work
39 x 57 cm (15 3/8 x 22 7/16 inches)
Transfer from RISD Textiles department: gift of Mae and Gene Festa from the Mae Festa Textile Collection 2017.45.34

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Feedback

We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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