Man's Burnous, Akhnif, Ait Ouaouzguite, 153 X 235 Cm, Siroua, Atlas, Morocco, Museum Quality

Wool weaving. Man's burnous called Akhnif, Ait Ouaouzguite, Siroua region, Morocco, early 20th century.
A Man's hooded cape, Akhnif, Aït Ouaouzguit Morocco very similar to the one in the Indianapolis Museum of Art, The Eliza M and Sarah L. Niblack Collection. USA.
Weaving work of goat hair and wool and embroidery of wool and cotton, from the early 20th century.
Dimensions: Height 153 cm x 235 cm
# A copy very similar to our model but less decorated is kept at the Indianapolis Museum of Art, and belonging to the collection Eliza M. and Sarah L.Niblack Collection, ref. 33.1984.
This Akhnif, a burnous from the High Atlas in Morocco, was woven by the Aït Ouaouzguite tribes.
This hemispherical hooded cape, made of dark brown, almost black wool, was woven and embroidered in the center with an oblong red eye-shaped motif, framed by polychrome geometric embroidered motifs, and fringed at the bottom.
In the southern Atlas Mountains, the akhnif was a standard male garment worn by Muslims and Jews, typically black and embroidered with an intricate orange decoration woven into the back, and featuring a large, dark pink motif resembling an eye for protective purposes.
In accordance with local laws, Jews wore the garment distinctly, only inside out.
Thus, only the hanging threads of the inner side were visible, and it was only when the akhnif was wrapped around the shoulders that the motif was revealed in all its splendor.
History:
The inhabitants of the region of the Ouaouzguite, Jews and Muslims, wore the akhnif, a burnous decorated at the base of the back with a large orange half-moon.
The akhnif was woven in black goat hair, in one piece on a vertical loom, both in Berber and Jewish homes.
The central motif woven in the weft over a large part of the length was supplemented by embroidery in bright tones.
The ornament was red or orange, more rarely gray.
Other geometric motifs, obtained by weft decoration, surrounded the half-moon and the edge of the garment.
Very fine embroidery, tone on tone, embellished the front of the akhnif over its entire height.
The bottom of the garment was, moreover, decorated with a black fringe and a huge tassel, often orange, hung from the tip of the hood.
# The half-moon that decorates the akhnif is interpreted in various ways.
The ornament would represent a wadi crossing flower gardens, for some its shape would represent an eye, an element likely to ward off bad influences.
According to another hypothesis, it would be a reminder of the Portuguese flag. Indeed, by sitting on the part of the garment decorated with their emblem, the wearer thus showed contempt for these former foreign conquerors.
The Jews could wear this magnificent Berber garment, but not without restrictions.
They were, as said before, forced to wear it inside out, so that the right side of the decoration was only visible when the sides of the burnous were raised on the shoulders.
Jewish children, on the other hand, were allowed to wear it normally on the right side.
width: 155 cm - (61") Length: 235 cm - (92") with fringes height: 166 cm
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This burnous has been professionally and ecologically cleaned
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