Scarves evolved from practicality to fashion statement that shows cultural meaning and personal style.
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From pure practicality scarves became a symbol of a group, from a religous to a national one, and today they still carry a meaning that's deeper than their sheer look. How important they were through the history and how much skill is needed to produce the best examples tells us the fact that some of them are intangible cultural heritage of humanity, such as Kelaghayi silk scarves from Azerbaijan. Rooted in the old traditions that strecth back to the originial Silk Road, they are mainly made in Sheki and Basgal where masters painstakingly create their masterpieces.
Kelaghayi is a scarf of shawl woven from silk thread and worn by the Azerbaijani women as a symbol of chastity and respect. Based on tradition, the patterns and colors have their meaning based on important events and social differences. Younger women wear brighter colors, while older women usually opt for darker ones. There are scarves for daily life, wedding and everythign inbetween, and an interesting tradition is when a woman gives a scarf to man, that's a sign that she accepted his proposition to marry her. Then, at the wedding, she will wear a red kelaghayi scarf.
Kelaghayi masters need several steps to make a good and beautiful scarf. First, the best silk has been choosen. Then weavers use silk threads to weave fabrics and boil them and dry to get square cloths. Using colors based on vegetables they apply various colors and make patterns using wooden stamps. Everything is done using local materials and skill is transferred from one generation to another. Every family has something of their own, from specific colors to patterns that defines them alongside the overal meaning of the Kelaghayi scarf.
Kelaghayi scarves clearly show that Azerbaijani culture gives an important place to a woman, no matter the regional differences. On top of that, Azerbaijani sometimes wear three pieces at the same time: first the gauze juna, then Kelaghayi scarf, and then a triangular scarf. Azerbaijani masters expanded their production to neighboring countries and they established a Kelaghayi museum in Basgal when you can even take part in their production. Prices range from $15 to more then $150 but their beauty and uniqueness are worth every cent. ■
