Yemen’s ancient leather clothing still in market [Archives:2006/994/Last Page]
October 30 2006
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Several people still come to our shops to buy handmade leather cloths says Mohamed Hassan Al-Thawr, a spinner of traditional textiles.
Today people still like to wear traditional handmade dresses despite the availability of modern and contemporary cloths, says Al-Thawr.
“We are called spinners since we spin wools and leathers of local sheep and transform them into clothing for people to wear,” explains Al-Thawr. “We have been pursuing the handicraft since the old times and in the past, Yemenis used to put on such dresses as there were no factories.”
Since the old times, human beings have used leather and wool of animals and made clothes from them until the time of textile and weaving factories. Such old items still exist in some places, particularly the Old City of Sana'a. People are still wearing them, mainly in highlands and mountainous areas, where the weather is cold.
Asked how leather clothes are weaved, Al-Thawr explained the long process.
“When sheep are slaughtered we buy the leather and expose it to the sun on the roof of our workshop for one or two weeks. When the leather dries, we then put it in a bath-like room and add dried leaves of the Qaradh tree before rubbing the substance with a small piece of wood. After the leather becomes rubbery, we tailor and weave it into cloths according to demands of customers.”
Leather-made cloths include traditional the Yemeni kark, jaram, qasira and khuttta. The kark is a long jacket reaching the heels and inside it is stuffed with wool while the jaram, which is made with long sleeves, is usually put on under the kark. The qasira is a small coat without sleeves while the khutta consists of wool strings that are spun and weaved with one another to be used as a blanket.
The spinner noted the prices of these products range between YR 6000 and 10,000 and most of the time the price depends on the customer's order.
Many people are still visiting the spinners in the old city.
Ahmad Al-Khawlani comes to Sana'a to buy clothes for his father because his father doesn't like the new styles.
“I came from Khawlan, which is far away from Sana'a to buy a jaram for my father who refuses to put on any modern garments,” said Al-Khawlani. “A modern garment can cost only 50 percent of the jaram price, but my father said he doesn't feel warm unless he puts on his jaram.”
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