Exhibition of traditional dress, jewellery showcases Arab world’s shared heritage

AMMAN — It took Widad Kawar 30 years to collect the traditional pieces of jewellery and dresses now being showcased in her joint exhibition with Sami Moawiyah Yousef, which she said is aimed at highlighting “Arab unity”.

“I like to collect items from Palestine, Jordan and Yemen, among other countries. If we delve deep into these cultures, we can notice that they are similar to each other,” Kawar told The Jordan Times during the opening ceremony of the exhibition on Tuesday. 

Her Majesty Queen Rania inaugurated the exhibition, called “Ya Hafeth Ya Ameen”, held at the Widad Kawar Home for Arab Dress, Tiraz.

“I also like to show the West the beauty of our culture,” Kawar said. 

“The foreigners were amazed by the beauty of these items and the techniques that were used in their design a long time ago,” she added.

Kawar highlighted the silver jewellery in the exhibition, explaining that when a man wanted to get married, he was asked to bring many silver items, because according to tradition women felt that silver would bring them good luck.  

She said the Arab market was today lacking in quality jewellery with traditional significance because it was sold to people abroad and became scarce.

The show also features a number of dresses collected from Palestine, Syria and Jordan. 

Zaina Hamarneh, one of the visitors, said the exhibition brings people closer to their heritage.  

“The good thing about this exhibition is that it includes several dresses as well as descriptions of their history. We need this information because we have strayed far from our heritage.”    

Laila Rifaai, another visitor, said she liked the fact that the exhibition combines the history of many countries. 

“At this difficult time, it is really important to learn about our traditions and heritage,” Rifaai noted.  

Kawar said she wanted to encourage the younger generation to learn more about their culture and heritage. 

“Heritage is our roots, which is why grandmothers used to bring their grandchildren together and tell them about their heritage,” she added.  

The exhibition will run until March 28, 2016.