Bag Item Number: 915/12 from the MOA: University of British Columbia

Description

Small, rectangular, flat, multi-coloured embroidered bag made by folding a wide piece of embroidered textile in half and seaming two edges, leaving one edge and a side slit open. The bag is embellished on each side with a large, complex, curvilinear, naturalistic floral motif, using several kinds of embroidery stitches. The opening of the bag is embellished with seven rows of small geometric border patterns, and the bottom of the bag has a border of small paisley motifs. The stitchery is worked on dark red silk, backed with pink and tan striped cotton textile.

History Of Use

Small bags like this one are made and used over a broad geographic area in Central Asia and South Asia, where they are used to transport small personal items. May have originated in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan or Afghanistan?

Narrative

According to Clarke Abbott of Tradewinds Antiques, the person who collected this piece lived in Kabul in the early 1960s, doing ambassadorial work. He traveled widely throughout the area. He was killed in an automobile accident there, and no further information is available about him or his collection. The piece was subsequently acquired by Tradewinds Antiques in Vancouver at an unknown date, and the Museum of Anthropology purchased it in 1984, when the business was liquidating its stock.