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This information was automatically generated from data provided by MOA: University of British Columbia. It has been standardized to aid in finding and grouping information within the RRN. Accuracy and meaning should be verified from the Data Source tab.

Description

A black headdress with a circular band and a long tail, decorated with shells, buttons, beads, and bells. The circular band has two rows of shells bordered with a thin metal chain and red oblong beads in pairs. Along the tail there are rows of clear buttons and small brass bells. There are also rows of five vertical strands of round red beads with two round white beads and two red oblong beads in the centre. About halfway down the tail there is a large brass ornament surrounded by a circle of clear buttons and round red beads. At the end of the tail there is a long black fringe with a large brass bell tied to the end of two fringe strands.

History Of Use

Worn daily, both in public and in private. At festive occasions, the shusut is worn underneath a larger, more elaborate headdress, called a kupas (see 1498/2). Girls receive their first headdress at about age 7 at an initiation rite. A woman must not go bareheaded; if the headdress is taken off for cleaning, the woman must wear a shawl over her head. The headdress is removed for funerals to mark respect for the dead.

Narrative

The Kalash are geographically isolated in several valleys in northern Pakistan, close to the Afghan border. Although they are surrounded by Islamic peoples, their religion is polytheistic, with a Vedic pantheon. Linguistically, however, they are related to Afghani and the languages of Swat.
The long “tail” of the shushut is thought to have evolved from long, loose fringes. The dark brown wool textile may have been dyed with walnuts. The shells, bark and nuts themselves are used to obtain a dark colour.

Item History

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