Bench - Mafrash (tas) - Wool

A mafrash from the Shahsevan nomads.
Specially made from kelim fabric that they wove in the tent on a primitive loom.

In the early 20th century, about 100 years ago, these nomads still roamed through southern Azerbaijan and northern Iran with their livestock.
These people lived very autonomously.
The livestock was the basis of their entire economy.
The women held a strong social position and made their carpets, kilims and soumaks from their own wool, dyed with homemade plant-based dyes.
The tradition and the patterns are centuries old.

Mafrashes were made with an open top and with a flap that could be fastened.
This one has an open top which I have inverted and placed over a box for display.
You can make a box yourself to use it as a bench.

A mafrash was made to serve as a bag to carry household items when the group moved on.
In the tent it could serve to sit on (inverted, as shown in the photo) as a bench or pouf.
Made for personal use and in a tradition in which these women were proud of their culture and the work, which showed in the quality.
This mafrash is about 100 years old and still looks very fresh and neat.
In very good condition.

The loops you see on the underside are made of very strong horsehair and are intended to close the mafrash.