Handira la coperta nuziale marocchina

HANDIRA, THE MOROCCAN WEDDING BLANKET

It has been said that the Handira, the Moroccan wedding blanket, can be considered the equivalent of the bridal gown. In fact, every Berber bride from the High and Middle Atlas wears one on her wedding day.

In the months leading up to the wedding, the future bride weaves a handira with the women of her family and while the Moroccan wedding blanket slowly takes shape, the women talk about important topics of married life, including those concerning sexuality and procreation.

On the day of her wedding, the bride, riding on a mule, goes from her home to that of her husband, where she will go to live, wearing her handira draped like a cloak. During the ride her family and neighbors sing songs about the bride’s qualities and the riches she will bring to the new family.

The handira blankets are hand-woven with wool and cotton, traditionally in natural color, and decorated with geometric patterns, fur or fringe bands and metal sequins, which with the movement sparkle and emit a sweet sound.

The bands have the dual purpose of protecting the Moroccan wedding blanket from humidity and hiding the brightly colored kilim embroideries found on the back of the blanket with the symbols of fertility, protection and good luck, typical of the Berber tradition. As for the metal sequins there are three different explanations: there are those who say that the shiny finish of the sequins protects against the evil eye, those who say that, remembering the coins, they bless the bride with good luck and wealth, who finally claims that metal sequins, being quite expensive, are a way for the family to show their wealth.

If you are interested in enriching the decor of your home with a Moroccan wedding blanket, you can find for sale, also in our online shop, two types available, namely the vintage handira blankets, highly sought after, and those made today by Berber women, who continue to keep this tradition alive. In both cases, these are woven and handmade blankets, each of which is a unique piece, which will give your interior a truly glam and refined touch.

(Images via pinterest.com, etno-chic.com, bestofarchitecture.com e decorpad.com – Some of the images in this blog are taken from the web and used quoting  the source. If there were any photos subject to copyright, please contact us and they will be removed. The images owned by etno-chic.com can only be used by quoting the source and relinking to the blog)

MOROCCAN WEDDING BLANKETS MOROCCAN PILLOWS

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