Syrian Arab News Agency S A N A
Damascus, SANA- From more than five centuries ago, Damascus city has been famous worldwide for manufacturing brocade fabric which was globally named after Damascus city and it has been considered as one of the finest and most expensive types of textile all over the world as it is made of gold and silver threads woven with natural silk.
Researcher, Ghassan Kallas noted that the fame of the Damask brocade has reached Palace Buckingham in Britain as in 1947, Elizabeth II wanted her wedding dress to be made of brocade adorned with gold and silver.
Kalass added that the fabric of brocade is soft, elegant and silky, for this reason it is difficult to weave it on automatic looms.
The fabric of Damask brocade consists of natural silk strings brought from villages in the Syrian coastal region, in addition to delicate threads of gold and silver woven together by Damascene craftsmen to form drawings of birds, deer and dancers as they spend a long time behind their looms to make one meter of Damask brocade, according to Kallas.
Kallas added that there are various types of the Damask brocade based on the items woven with the silk.
Kallas indicated that the looms used for manufacturing the Damask brocade mainly spread in the neighborhoods of al- Qaymariyeh, al-Shaghour and Rukn al-Din, as well as some of Damascus countryside towns.
He added that the Damask Brocade has been able to confront the invasion of European textile industries in the beginning of 20th century as it has received a significant turnout on the local, Arab and international levels.
The Damask brocade is considered an essential part of Damascus deep-rooted industries which have endowed it with a distinctive and unique identity, and preserving this industry is a part of preserving our cultural identity, Kallas concluded.
Hybah Sleman / Ruaa al-Jazaeri
