Woman’s Skullcap (Taqiyah)

Afghanistan

Mid-20th century

Cotton, metal, coins

Worn for religious purposes and to promote the wearer’s modesty, and often topped with a scarf, a skullcap is used by an unmarried girl to cover her head. The red color of the hat signifies magical properties, and the coins and other silver pieces are believed to keep the wearer safe by reflecting away evil spirits. Bird feathers would have been inserted at the top to ward off the evil eye.  

This skullcap, with its Turkmen embellishments and Afghan and Pakistani coins, derives from the mix of cultures that thrived along the Silk Road, a network of ancient trade routes that connected China and the Mediterranean. Turkmen, who are native to Central Asia, are Sunni Muslims. Because of their nomadic heritage, many of them migrated into northern Afghanistan, where they settled.