Woman's Munisak Robe
Uzbekistan, possibly from Bukhara
late 19th century
Warp-faced plain weave silk warp and weft ikat (abr, kanaous, or shabi)
Neck to hem: 49"/124.5 cm
Cuff to cuff: 58¾"/149.3 cm
Kent State University Museum, Silverman/Rodgers Collection, KSUM 1983.1.1989.

Geometric "Tashkent ball" motifs in purple, bright pink, and yellow, surrounded by the same color boteh (paisley) motifs, on a grayish-pink ground. Red silk embroidery under the sleeves at the junction of the bodice and gathered skirt. Russian printed cotton patches at the back with yellow boteh (paisley) motifs on a red ground. Unlined.

The munisak was worn on solemn occasions. It brought ceremony and sanctity to a woman's wedding day, to feasts celebrating the birth or circumcision of a son, and to holidays and family celebrations (1). The majority of ikat patterns on munisak were said to express hope for a happy life, promote fertility and protect against the "evil eye" (2).

Unlike other robes, the munisak was cut to be more fitted at the waist and with gathers creating a fuller skirt. Part of a woman's dowry, at least one munisak was worn by a bride upon entering her husband's family home for the first time. If she had several munisak, the best was worn over her head (3). Once in her stepmother's kingdom, a new bride was expected to do most of the work but could wear the fanciest robes. To keep her head covered, she often held the robe sleeves in her teeth while doing chores (4).

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(1) Kate Fitz Gibbon, "Ikat: Costume in Central Asia," Ornament 21, (Fall/ Summer 1997-1998): 58.
(2) Johannes Kalter, ed., Uzbekistan: Heirs to the Silk Road (Thames and Hudson, 1997), 226.
(3) Gibbon, 59.
(4) Kate Fitz Gibbon and Andrew Hale, Ikat: Splendid Silks of Central Asia: the Guido Goldman Collection (Lawrence King Publishing in Association with Alan Marcuson Publishing, 1999), 164.