Doll

This female doll is made from cloth and dressed in a red and blue striped dress embroidered withwhite and yellow thread. She wears trousers with yellow and orange stitching at the ankles, a redfabric belt and a decorative head covering adorned with small metal beads and cowrie shells. Hercream-colored fabric head is intentionally left without facial features, drawing attention to thedetailed clothing. The layered textiles and beadwork reflect creativity and a strong connection toregional materials and craft traditions.​

Collected in 1993 and attributed to Rahma, a woman from Taif, this doll represents the culturalidentity and traditional dress of the Thaqif tribe from the Hijaz region near Taif. The horizontal stripes inthe garments reflect common weaving patterns from the area. The cowrie shells decorating the headcovering hold cultural meaning and were historically used as currency and as symbols of prosperity,fertility and protection.​

History

Traditional dolls offer insight into women’s heritage, social identity and everyday life. Through theirclothing, they reflect garments worn by Hijazi women, including the thobe, a loose floor-length dress,the zabun, an inner garment and the sirwaal, long trousers worn underneath. Public dress oftenincluded a burka or a milayah, a long white veil. Decorative head coverings such as the mudawwarahor shamber were frequently enhanced with embroidery or tal'li, using gold or silver thread.​

These dolls serve as meaningful cultural objects that help preserve and share regional craftsmanshipand traditions across generations.

_{Choosing an artifact and creating a fictional story about it from the collection of Art of Heritage and Asaan.}