Shalvar
1800-1900 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Shalvar are loose trousers gathered at the waist and ankles. They can be worn by both men and women, but the extreme bagginess of this pair suggests they were made for a man. They are decorated using a type of embroidery called couching: a thick gold thread is laid on the surface of the fabric in a scrolling pattern, and held in place using small stitches.
These trousers were owned by the journalist, travel writer and imaginative historian Lesley Blanch (1904-2007), who called herself "a romantic traveller". She is shown wearing them in a portrait painted by the French writer Louise de Vilmorin in 1945.
These trousers were owned by the journalist, travel writer and imaginative historian Lesley Blanch (1904-2007), who called herself "a romantic traveller". She is shown wearing them in a portrait painted by the French writer Louise de Vilmorin in 1945.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Silk, with metal thread embroidery and applied brocade, lined in cotton |
| Brief description | Red silk shalvar (loose trousers) decorated with gilt embroidery, Albania, 1800-1900 |
| Physical description | Very loose red silk trousers, gathered at the waist and tightly fitted at the ankles, fully lined in white cotton. Decorated with couched gilt embroidery, applied strips of brocade ribbon, and cord embroidered with silver thread. Finished at the waistband with cotton tape, and fastened with hooks and eyes at one side of the waist. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Credit line | Given by the executors of Lesley Blanch |
| Object history | Historical significance: These trousers were owned by the writer and traveller Lesley Blanch (1904-2007), who is shown wearing them in a watercolour portrait by Louise de Vilmorin dated 3rd March 1945. Blanch's first direct encounter with Islam took place in that year, when she travelled to Bulgaria with her then husband, the diplomat Romain Gary. She was later to travel extensively in the Islamic world. |
| Summary | Shalvar are loose trousers gathered at the waist and ankles. They can be worn by both men and women, but the extreme bagginess of this pair suggests they were made for a man. They are decorated using a type of embroidery called couching: a thick gold thread is laid on the surface of the fabric in a scrolling pattern, and held in place using small stitches. These trousers were owned by the journalist, travel writer and imaginative historian Lesley Blanch (1904-2007), who called herself "a romantic traveller". She is shown wearing them in a portrait painted by the French writer Louise de Vilmorin in 1945. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | ME.3-2007 |
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| Record created | January 3, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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