al-Hiba: Decorative Amulet Makers
Date: 1960s
These amulets (dilaʾa) are decorative, but their primary function is averting the “Evil Eye.” They are constructed by wrapping colourful thread around crossed reed sticks. The design depends on the type of evil to be averted. See also: Jeweler; Plier of Thread; Weaver; Maker of Funerary Jewelry.
Citation: Ochsenschlager, Edward. Iraq’s Marsh Arabs in the Garden of Eden (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, 2004), pp. 223-24.
B