Women / Muslim Women’s Costume and Jewellery

‘Islam enjoins both men and women to dress modestly and women are expected to cover their heads.’

Islam enjoins both men and women to dress modestly. Muslim women are expected to cover their heads and wear long-sleeve garments that reach from the neck to the ankle. Beyond these general conventions observed by all, Muslim female costume has always varied greatly from culture to culture and from period to period in terms of textiles, design, layering of garments, the style of headdress and accessories. Social class and ethnic background have also played a role in a woman’s appearance.

NameDynastyDetailsJustification
KaftanHegira 13th century / AD 19th century'AlawidMuseum of the Udayas
Rabat, Morocco
This expensive Moroccan kaftan shows Ottoman influences. It has two embroidered bands. The neck opening has buttons and lace edges.
Kütahya ceramicsHegira 12th–13th century / AD 18th–19th centuryOttomanMuseum of Turkish and Islamic Arts
Sultanahmet, Istanbul, Turkey
The costume of a provincial 12th- / 18th-century Ottoman woman is illustrated by this plate. She wears a kaftan with a shirt beneath it, a wide trouser and the characteristic headdress.
Tabica (small board)Late 13th centuryMudéjarNational Archaeological Museum
Madrid, Spain
A tile that illustrates the contemporary 7th- / 13th-century outfit of an ordinary Spanish woman, including a shirt and thin outer garment (izar).
Silk garmentHegira 1245 / AD 1830OttomanIslamic Museum, al-Aqsa Mosque / al-Haram al-Sharif
Jerusalem
Affluent women could afford expensive attire as seen here; this outfit belonged to the wife of the Ottoman ruler of Jerusalem.