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Woven headcloths from Southwest China

(headcloths of the Bouyei, Dong and Miao)

Different minority groups in Southwest China - including the Bouyei, Dong and Miao, weave headcloths as part of their traditional costume although, sadly, in some groups, these are being superceded by manufactured towels and, increasingly, not worn at all. The headcloths may be worn by men or by women. They are often beautiful gems of fine weaving and may serve to identify different groups. However, as the minority groups may live side-by-side and absorb style influences from each other it can be very difficult to identify which minority group may have woven them. The www.tribaltextiles.info/community forum has several threads where members have posted examples of the genre seeking help in identifying them or generally sharing their beauty. Forum member Iain Stephens, with several examples especially of Dong headcloths in his collection, suggested it would be helpful to put together photogalleries of them to share. The thumbnails below are links to photos of individual cloths in the collections of Iain and, hopefully in the future, of other forum members.

Headcloths in the collection of Iain Stephens
all text & images © Iain Stephens
Click on thumbnail to go to associated slide show
See an interesting forum thread on various headcloths
Click on thumbnail to go to associated slide show