page_title: Tiraz
section_title: History of Islamic dress code
hierarchical_section_title: Tiraz / History of Islamic dress code
caption_attribution_description: English: A band of inscriptions usually on textiles is called the tiraz. This cloth inscription is embroidered in split stitch, with yellow silk on the red ground. Before being sown, the inscription was dotted with ink on the fabric. Florence Day dates this tiraz inscription to the time of the Umayyad caliph Marwan I, i.e., Marwan ibn al-Hakam (64-65 AH / 684-85 CE). This dating makes it the earliest known Islamic textile. Location: The Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester.
context_page_description: Tiraz are medieval Islamic embroideries, usually in the form of armbands sewn onto robes of honour. They were bestowed upon high-ranking officials who showed loyalty to the Caliphate, and given as gifts to distinguished individuals. They were usually inscribed with the ruler's names, and were embroidered with threads of precious metal and decorated with complex patterns. Tiraz were a symbol of power; their production and export were strictly regulated, and were overseen by a government-appointed official.
  They were very likely influenced by the "tablion", a decorated patch added to the body of the tunic as a badge of rank or position in late Roman and Byzantine dress.
context_section_description: The notion of dress code in the Islamic world evolved early at the beginning of the expansion of the new empire. As the empire expanded, cultural divisions were established, each with its own dress code. The Arabs, a minority in their own empire, distinguished themselves by establishing a rule which would innitiate differentiation (ghiyar) to maintain identity. Regulation of this kind was first ascribed to caliph Umar (r. 634–644) in the so-called Pact of Umar, a list of rights and restrictions on protected non-Muslims (dhimmi) which would granted security of their persons, families, and possessions. As the vestimentary system evolved, so to the application of the rule. Requirements were also applied to the Arab military; for example, Arab warriors set up in the eastern provinces were forbidden to wear the Persian kaftan and leggings.
  By the end of the Umayyad Caliphate in the mid 8th-century, dress code law had become less strict. Arabs living in remote provinces such as Khurasan had become assimilated with the local culture, including the way they dressed. The trend of moving away from the stricter vestimentary system also occurred in the high-ranking officials, even at early times. It has been recorded that Arab rulers of the Umayyad dynasty already wore Persian-style coats, with pantaloons and qalansuwa turbans. High-ranking Umayyad officials also adopted the custom of wearing luxurious garments of silk, satin, and brocade, in imitation of the Byzantine and Sasanian courts. Following the tradition of Byzantine and Persian rulers, the Umayyads also established state factories to produce the tiraz. Tiraz garments indicate to whom the wearer was loyal, by means of an inscription (e.g. the name of the ruling caliph), similar with the minting of the caliph's name on coins (sikka).
  Tiraz bands were presented to loyal subjects in a formal ceremony, known as the khil'a ("robe of honor") ceremony, which can be traced as far as the time of Prophet Muhammad. High-quality gold tiraz bands, embroidered onto silk robes, were bestowed to deserving viziers and other high-ranking officials; the quality of tiraz reflected the influence (and wealth) of the recipient.
  The Umayyads were later succeeded by the Abbasids in 750 CE, but the tiraz still held its previous symbolic role of power and propaganda. The tiraz had such a strong influence within the political context of the Abbasid caliphate that it was used, at times, as a means of usurpation. This could be seen with the appointment of al‐Muwaffaq, a highly influential force within the caliphate, as the viceroy of the East in 875 CE by his brother, caliph al‐Muʿtamid. The succession proved as a threat for Ahmad ibn Tulun, the Turkic governor of Egypt, as al‐Muwaffaq had extinguished his efforts to destabilize his, al‐Muwaffaq's control. In Ibn Tulun's reprisal, he ceased the mention of al‐Muwaffaq on tiraz inscriptions, which emphasized the importance of the tiraz in the political context and its influence on one's courtly status in the public's eye.  
  With the spread of Islam came rising caliphates, triggering a paradigm shift in the role of the tiraz. The grip of the Abbasid caliphate was weakened as they lost control over their Turkic slave armies and Egypt's Fatimids and Spain's Umayyads began to establish their rule. In Fatimid court, guilloche decorations began to be used and a new concept of juxtaposing figures with text was introduced due to Roman influence. Through their establishment, the Fatimids brought with them a new use of the tiraz: bestowing robes of honor in non-court context. As the custom of bestowing robes of honor spread, public studios (‘amma) began imitating the custom of bestowing tiraz by producing their own tiraz for public use. In Fatimid Egypt, people who could afford the ‘amma tiraz would perform their own "khil'a" ceremony on family and friends, as documented in the documents of Cairo Geniza and relics found in Cairo. These "public tiraz" were considered family treasures and passed down as heirlooms. Tiraz were also given as gifts. A sovereign in Andalu
caption: This tiraz attributed to the 7th-century Umayyad caliph Marwan I is among the earliest tiraz. It uses very small Kufic script and very dominant pattern typical of early tiraz.
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