# Man's Waist Sash

- By: Made in Iran or Poland for the Polish market
- Date: 18th century
- Medium: Silk compound weave, with applied silk and metal fringe
- Classification: Costume and Accessories
- Dimensions: 452.2 × 68.8 cm (178 3/8 × 27 1/8 in.)
- Culture: Iran
- Credit line: Gift of Mrs. Bruce Borland
- Museum: [Art Institute of Chicago](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/66049)
- Rights: [Public domain (CC0)](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- Picture: https://www.artic.edu/iiif/2/2100c23e-c3a7-0b5e-02fd-87f63f01820a/full/!1920,1080/0/default.jpg
- Who can see it: Tweens profiles and older (museums give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the museum's own words)

The long silk sashes worn as part of men’s dress in Persia (present-day Iran) and north India were adopted by Polish nobility during the late 1600s. Wrapped around the waist with the fringed ends hanging free, such expensive woven silks denoted the wearer’s high status. Sashes became part of noblemen’s formal dress as a symbol of Poland’s history as the territory connecting Europe and Asia. They were exported from Iran, made in Poland, and made in France for export to Poland.

Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0