Weaving

There are numerous regional variations of the treadle loom. The “pit looms” is the one Dorze use.

The weaver is sitting on the edge of the pit above which the loom is mounted and in which he operates the treadles with his feet. Alternatively, the weaver may sit upright with his feet operating the treadles at ground level.

Male craftsmen predominantly operate the weaving and the women are cleaning and spinning the cotton.

The weavers use three kinds of raw materials: #Dir, a factory produced warp (which is locally known as komtare), #mag, a weft which is spun by women mostly in the house and #tilet, factory produced coloured threads used for decorative borders.

The weavers produce three kinds of cloth: #Kemis, is the name for women’s dresses which are usually worn together with a #netela. The latter is a shawl, which may also be worn with other types of clothing. The third item is a #gabi, a large cloth worn by both women and men in bed or in cold weather. The #bulliko can be added to the list of cloth. It is a thicker and bigger cloth used as a blanket in bed.

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