Woven Kuchi Tent Band from Afghanistan

This is an old, beautiful woven 5m long tent band from Afghanistan, in excellent condition and with elaborate tassels.

Tightly woven in dark colours including varying shade of brown veering almost to black, deep reds and indigo. There is none of the fugitive purple onion skin colour often seen in Afghan textiles.

There are many different woven patterns along the band all being various elongated diamonds and zig zags except for a short plain section in the middle.

In Afghanistan a tent band like this is used to create the correct tension when the tent poles are erected. The Kuchi nomads' annual transhumance takes them along several well established routes across Afghanistan to fresh pastures for their flocks of sheep and goats.