This lovely child's hat was hand-embroidered by women of Kohistan, an area of lush green forests and valleys located on the river Indus. The embroidery technique is a fine cross stitch and brick stitch in acrylic thread with white beads and buttons. Diameter: 7.5 inches, circumference: 18 inches. Condition: Excellent. Estimated age: late 20th century. The hat size indicates it was made for an infant or toddler.

Coarse cotton fabric painted and printed with two leopards. These cloths were used in Afghanistan for a special hunting technique of partridges. Please refer to the article about these textiles in "Asian Textiles: NEWSLETTER OF THE OXFORD ASIAN TEXTILE GROUP", No. 40. From an old Swiss collection. Condition: very good. Dimension: approx. 78 cm x 105 cm.

Measuring 63 x 88 inches (160 x 224 cm), this hand-embroidered wedding shawl from the remote region of Indus Kohistan in northeast Pakistan is estimated to date to the mid or late 20th century. Worked in extremely fine cross stitch and satin stitch in silk thread in interlocking geometric motifs and embellished with beaded edges, a textile such as this may take up to six months to produce. This shawl is embroidered on a black cotton ground and is in excellent condition.

This old Uzbek napramach (also known as a mafrash among the Turkmen tribes) is from northern Afghanistan and is embroidered in silk thread on a grey plainweave cotton background. The medallion and geometric motifs reflect the Greek artistic legacy which influenced the urban weaving workshops of Bactria, a satrap of Alexander the Great's eastern empire. Similar motifs are found in ancient Greek vase designs and also in Chinese neolithic pottery...

This boy's coat resembles the famous green chapan worn by Hamid Karzai, the current President of Afghanistan. These coats are worn in Central Asia including Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, etc. This chapan is woven in silk with a blue cotton shibori inside lining in plain weave, with the inside lapel in brown cotton corduroy. It measures 92.5 cm across the top, from sleeve end to sleeve end. The sleeve opening measures 21 cm...

This textile is from Jaghori in central Afghanistan. It measures 25 x 26 centimeters and is in excellent condition. It is embroidered in cross stitch in silk thread and tightly worked into an overall composition that is very typical of the embroidery from this area. Estimated age: mid 20th century. Condition: Excellent.

This child's waistcoat is from Indus Kohistan, located in the province of Pakistan formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP), recently re-named Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is a superb piece, embroidered on black cotton fabric and embellished with coins, multicolored glass seed beads and pearly buttons. The vest measures 32 cm by 37 cm with the neck yoke measuring 11 cm. It is estimated to date to the middle to late 20th century...

This is a vintage child's front from Paktia province in eastern Afghanistan. It measures 25 x 28 cm and is densely embroidered in silk thread in a tightly worked ladder stitch. The sides, shoulder and waist straps are executed in Bukhara stitching where the metallic threads are carefully laid in parallel and then meticulously fastened down with a cotton thread. This textile is estimated to date to the mid 20th century and is in excellent condition.

Worked in an intriguing combination of long and short stitch and ladder stitch on a fine cotton muslin ground, this Uzbek cushion cover from northern Afghanistan measures 39 x 78 cm and is dated to the mid 20th century. The central field of large rosettes and floral motifs, accented with leaves and smaller rosettes, is executed in silk thread in vivid primary colors in Bukhara couching to evoke the image of a garden in bloom. Condition is excellent.

This textile from Afghanistan measures 24 x 27 cm and is dated to the mid 20th century. The highlights of this textile are the four mirrors ("shisha") which are made of mirror glass and used as an amulet to ward off the evil eye. The embroidery is silk thread on a plum cotton ground, in straight stitch, ladder stitch and Holbein stitch, all combined in an effective way to make the overall composition...

Straddling both sides of the Durand Line, the Mangal tribe are one of the more influential Pashtun tribes. This Mangal textile measures 24.6 x 28 cm and is in excellent condition. Curvilinear and geometric motifs are excecuted in straight stitch, Holbein stitch, and a tightly worked ladder stitch on a plum polyester ground. Estimated age: mid 20th century. The Mangal reside primarily in southeastern Paktia and adjacent Khost provinces of Afghanistan...

This Pashtun textile measures 35 x 35 cm and is embroidered in silk thread on a purple polyester ground. Two mirrors are sewn on as accents in each of the two 14-pointed stars. The embroidery technique is a tightly worked ladder stitch, typical of the embroidery of Katawaz. Condition: Excellent. Estimated age: mid 20th century.

Straddling both sides of the Durand Line, the Mangal tribe are an influential Pashtun tribe. This Mangal child's dress front features the ubiquitous "gul-i-peron" discs incorporating blue glass beads and mirrors on a leather ground, a talisman that protects the young wearer against the evil eye. Satin stitch, herringbone stitch, a tightly worked ladder stitch and Bukhara stitching are the elements that make this composition highly effective...

This child's dress front from Gardez in Afghanistan measures 26 x 29.5 cm and is tightly embroidered in cross stitch. The geometric motifs are accentuated by the blue glass beads on each side of the textile, a prophylactic against the evil eye. The front side is embellished with metallic thread and Bukhara stitching, where the thread is taken along in intervals and fastened down by a minute cotton thread. This piece is in excellent condition and its estimated age is mid to late 20th century...

Measuring 28.5 x 30 cm, this child's dress front from Afghanistan is in excellent condition. Mirrors are extensively used in Pashtun embroidery, because they reflect sunlight and protect the wearer from evil glances. The mica is attached to the fabric by means of minutely stitched mirror frameworks and encircling borders. This textile is impressive based on the extensive mirrorwork, beadwork, and meticulous herringbone stitch, with metallic thread in Bukhara couching...

Mirrors ("shisha") are extensively used in Afghan embroidery. The silvered mica or glass is attached to the fabric by means of stitched frameworks and encircling borders. By reflecting sunlight, mirrors protect the wearer from negative energies and evil glances. This child's dress front is densely embroidered in silk thread on a purple polyester ground, complemented in royal purple velvet on the reverse...

This vintage Turkmen Tekke child's bib or collar is hand-embroidered in silk thread with cotton tassels. Shoulder to shoulder measures 19" and the front is 9 1/2" with a 3" fringe. The reverse is a printed cotton fabric and the embroidery technique features the traditional gul-i-badam ("almond flower") motif which is generally found only on Turkmen embroideries from Afghanistan. Condition is excellent and its estimated age is late 20th century.

This is a dowry purse from Afghanistan, measuring 19.5 cm x 29 when open, 16 x 19.5 when closed. The embroidery technique is silk thread in button stitch with herringbone stitch and long and short stitch. Embroidered on a silk background with mica mirrors, a few of them missing, the purse is otherwise in good condition for its age (mid to late 20th century).