Qabqabs (Bath Clogs)
Late 19th century or early 20th century
- Medium
- Wood inlaid with pearl; leather; wrapped metal-strip thread wrapped around a paper card form, purl, metal-wrapped thread embroidery on a cotton twill weave ground
- Classification
- Costume and Accessories
- Culture
- Turkey
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago, Textiles
- Credit line
- Purchased with funds provided by Mrs. Potter Palmer II
- Rights
- Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed
View at the Art Institute of Chicago
About this work
Both men and women wore qabqabs (bath clogs) in hammams (public baths) throughout North Africa, the Mediterranean, and southwestern Asia. These raised wooden clogs elevated the wearer’s feet above the wet, soapy floors. The name "qabqab" derives from the clomping sound they make when walking on stone floors. Qabqabs for wealthy women were often elaborate, sometimes reaching stilt-like heights, three or four times as tall as this example. The use of materials like gold, silver, precious stones, mother-of-pearl, tortoiseshell, and embroidered straps reflected the owner’s wealth and social standing. The higher the clogs, the more likely the wearer would need assistance from attendants to walk, further emphasizing their elite status.
Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0
