Various methods were used to make Islamic textiles in Egypt. Weavers used both horizontal and vertical looms for their work, relics from Ancient Egypt that exist today in hand workshops.
One method created fabrics with noncontinuous wefts, or horizontal threads, called "Al-Kapati." This method used noncontinuous wefts that did not stretch the whole width of the piece of fabric. Egyptians were known for making Al-Kapati fabrics before the spread of Islam and continued to make them until the end of the Fatimid era. The name of the fabric was a reference to Egypt itself, not to the Coptic Orthodox Church. "Al-Kapati" is derived from the same Arabic root for "Copt," the original meaning of which is "Egyptian." Similar cases of name derivation are the fabrics from Damascus, which are called damask, and those from Mosul, which are called muslin. Al-Kapati was used in making the covers of the Kaaba in Mecca.
Extra wefts woven into fabric was a method used in making and decorating fabrics. The decorations are a result of the appearance and disappearance of weft yarns as a result of their intersection with warp, or vertical thread, yarns through the width of the fabric. There are two kinds of weft decorations, true weft and traditional weft. True weft decorations have another weft with a color different than that of the background. Traditional weft decorations have only one original weft. Another type of decorated woven fabric is called Zardakhan fabric, which is the simplest of all complex fabrics. The weft appears on both sides of the fabric, while the warp is completely hidden. Two or more wefts with different colors are used in making this kind of fabric, as well as two warps, one of which disappears completely between the two weft layers. Zardakhan is a Persian word meaning "War House." The most probable explanation for the name is that arms made out of chains and other weapons were covered by a layer of this thick fabric brocaded with yellow and red silk.
One method created fabrics with noncontinuous wefts, or horizontal threads, called "Al-Kapati." This method used noncontinuous wefts that did not stretch the whole width of the piece of fabric. Egyptians were known for making Al-Kapati fabrics before the spread of Islam and continued to make them until the end of the Fatimid era. The name of the fabric was a reference to Egypt itself, not to the Coptic Orthodox Church. "Al-Kapati" is derived from the same Arabic root for "Copt," the original meaning of which is "Egyptian." Similar cases of name derivation are the fabrics from Damascus, which are called damask, and those from Mosul, which are called muslin. Al-Kapati was used in making the covers of the Kaaba in Mecca.
Extra wefts woven into fabric was a method used in making and decorating fabrics. The decorations are a result of the appearance and disappearance of weft yarns as a result of their intersection with warp, or vertical thread, yarns through the width of the fabric. There are two kinds of weft decorations, true weft and traditional weft. True weft decorations have another weft with a color different than that of the background. Traditional weft decorations have only one original weft. Another type of decorated woven fabric is called Zardakhan fabric, which is the simplest of all complex fabrics. The weft appears on both sides of the fabric, while the warp is completely hidden. Two or more wefts with different colors are used in making this kind of fabric, as well as two warps, one of which disappears completely between the two weft layers. Zardakhan is a Persian word meaning "War House." The most probable explanation for the name is that arms made out of chains and other weapons were covered by a layer of this thick fabric brocaded with yellow and red silk.
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