Representative image from an independent shop or archive, not a photograph of the listed object. The seller, price, date, materials, provenance and documentation described on this page have not been verified against the pictured item. Colour varies between screens.
Handwoven Termeh Cloth
A sofreh cloth with boteh bands and a deep patterned end border. Supplementary wefts are visible on the reverse, and the repeat carries the small irregularities of hand weaving.
- Craft
- Termeh
- Region
- Kerman
- Technique
- Supplementary weft brocade
- Materials
- Silk and fine wool
- Dimensions
- 120 × 180 cm
- Weight
- 0.6 kg
- Date
- 2025
Condition
New, unused
Provenance
Woven by the named weaver on a drawloom.
Documentation
Workshop certificate stating handwoven drawloom production.
This is illustrative sample documentation, not evidence for the pictured object. No seller or object claim has been independently verified. The archive does not certify authenticity.
Care
Follow the preservation guidance in the Termeh entry: light, humidity and physical support matter more than cleaning.
About Termeh
Definition
Termeh is a figured cloth in which extra patterning wefts float across a plain or twill ground to build dense bands of ornament, usually running along the length of the fabric with elaborate end borders.
It is used for sofreh cloths, ceremonial covers, cushion faces, prayer cloths and garments, and appears in Iranian domestic ritual as much as in dress.
History
Brocade weaving is documented in Yazd and Kerman over several centuries, with the drawloom allowing many colours in a single repeat. Hand production contracted sharply with mechanised weaving; power looms now supply most cloth sold as termeh.
Technique
Hand weaving on a drawloom is slow, historically producing only a short length per day, which is why handwoven termeh commands a substantial premium. Reverse floats are trimmed after weaving.
General background on the craft, not a statement about any individual object; dates and attributions summarise common positions in the literature and remain under review. Read the full Termeh entry.
Checklist before buying Termeh
Inspect
- Hand-loom termeh shows long weft floats on the back and a dense, slightly irregular face; machine jacquard has perfectly identical repeats.
- Check the fibre: traditional termeh uses wool or silk; viscose and polyester feel cooler and slicker.
- Look along the selvedges for hand-loom variation and for frayed or worn edges.
Red flags
- Polyester jacquard sold as hand-woven termeh.
- Printed paisley (boteh) cloth sold as woven.
- No weaving centre named for a piece described as 'Yazd termeh'.
Ask the seller
- Was it woven on a hand loom or a mechanised jacquard loom?
- What are the fibres?
- Which workshop wove it?
