12 Section Study of art

Shekpen

Karakalpak men’s traditional headdress  is a 

“

shogirme”-a hat made of sheepskin. Also Karakalpak 

man’s 

“postın” is a heavy and bulky sheepskin overcoat, 

worn with the skin facing outwards and the fleece fac-

ing inwards. The outer sheepskin facing of the coat is 

dyed a light yellow colour and the outer edges — con-

sisting of the collar and front panels and the coat bottom 

and the cuffs — are decorated with narrow strips of black 

or brown astrakhan pelt. These strips are bordered on the 

outside face of the coat with a band of striped, usually 

red, cloth which is often made of silk. A large triangular 

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Section 3. Study of art

14

amulet, made from the same striped cloth and known 

as a jawırınsha decorates the back of the coat, just below 

the collar. The long woollen fleece is often exposed along 

the front and bottom edges of the coat and around the 

collar and cuffs. Obviously the inner fleece means that 

the coat requires no lining. The Karakalpak 

“shekpen” is 

a long-sleeved overcoat or khalat made from homewoven 

camel wool cloth, or shal, which is normally light beige to 

mid brown in colour. It has a fairly straight cut, is nearly 

always unlined, and has no pockets.

Shapan

The front of the coat is overlapping and unfastened, 

while the collar is narrow, standing up behind the neck 

but lying flat on the chest at the front. There are low-

er vents in each side seam for ease of movement. The 

top underside of each sleeve usually has an opening 

rather than a gusset, the edges of which are sometimes 

finished with piping. As regards to decoration the outer 

edges of the collar, front openings, lower hem, side vents, 

and cuffs are finished with raspberry red silk jiyek. Of-

ten the inside edges of the front and bottom are lined 

with a narrow strip of Khivan or Bukharan adras or other 

brightly coloured cloth. Some shekpen are decorated 

with modest amounts of embroidery around the lower 

side vents and the collar. The Karakalpak man’s 

“shapan” 

is a lined, long-sleeved coat or khalat, which is normally 

quilted with cotton interlining. It is most commonly 

made from local alasha, a narrowly striped cotton textile 

with a polished finish, usually lilac, blue, or purple in co-

lour. The front is overlapping with no means of fastening 

and there are two lower side vents for ease of movement. 

There is a narrow collar, which is raised at the back but 

lies flat on the chest at the front. There is sometimes a 

single pocket. The edges of the coat, including the cuffs, 

are finished with a braid of raspberry red jiyek, which is 

woven directly onto the coat by hand [1,90–91].

Reference:

1.  Tlewmuratov M, Berdiev J, Tlewmuratova Qaraqalpaqstan tariyxi. – N.: Bilim, 2014.

2.  Kamalov S, Saribaev Q Qaraqalpaqstan tariyxi. – N.: Qaraqalpaqstan, 2004.

Lupovskaya Khristina Pavlovna,

Moscow, Tretyakov Gallery, Senior Researcher

E‑mail: [e-mail]