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Suzani is a type of embroidered and decorative tribal textile made in Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan and other Central Asian countries. Suzani is from the Persian سوزن Suzan which means needle. The art of making such textiles in Iran is called سوزن‌دوزی Suzandozi (needlework). Suzanis are rather delicate and extremely few examples survive from before the late 18th and early 19th centuries. They belong, however, to a very ancient tradition. In the early 15th century, Ruy Gonzáles de Clavijo, the Castilian ambassador to the court of Timur (Tamerlane), left detailed descriptions of embroideries that were probably forerunners of the suzani.

Suzanis were traditionally made by Central Asian brides as part of their dowry, and were presented to the groom on the wedding day.

Types

• Bukhara Suzani
• Khujand Suzani (Khujand, Tajikistan)
• Lakai Suzani
• Nurata Suzani, made in the town of Nurata in Uzbekistan.
• Piskent Suzani
• Samarkand Suzani
• Shakhrisabz Suzani
• Tashkent Suzani
• Ura Tube Suzani (Istaravshan, Tajikistan)
• Isfara Suzani (Isfara, Tajikistan)
• Kulob Suzani (Kulob, Tajikistan)
• Darvoz Suzani (Darvaz, Tajikistan)

• Stamps featuring suzanis
• Samarkand Suzani
• Bukhara Suzani
• Piskent Suzani

See also

• Kaitag textiles, embroidery style from Dagestan
• Tush kyiz
• Pateh, embroidered wool textile from Kerman province in Iran

References

1. "Splendid Suzanis, 2003, Saudi Aramco World
2. Article on suzanis

Sources and external links

• Guide to Suzani by Barry O'Connell. Photographs of all types of suzanis.
• Article on suzanis
• Contemporary Uzbek suzanis by Marla Mallett. Includes details of embroidery techniques.
• "Splendid Suzanis, 2003, Saudi Aramco World
• All about suzani from Central Asia
• TRC Needles entry on suzanis.

v t e Embroidery
Styles	Assisi Bargello Berlin work Blackwork Broderie anglaise Broderie perse Candlewicking Clare embroidery Counted-thread Crewel Cross-stitch Cutwork Darning Drawn thread work Goldwork Hardanger Hedebo Machine Needlepoint Quillwork Smocking Stumpwork Surface Suzani Whitework
Stitches	Backstitch Blanket Box Buttonhole Chain stitch Couching and laid work Cross stitches Embroidery stitch Featherstitch Holbein Parisian Running Satin stitch Sashiko Shisha Straight stitch Tent stitch
Tools and materials	Aida cloth Embroidery hoop Embroidery thread Evenweave Perforated paper Plainweave Plastic canvas Sampler Slip Yarn
Regionaland historical	Art needlework Balochi Brazilian Bunka shishu Burmese Chikan Chinese Cantonese Sichuan Suzhou Xiang English Indian Islamic Jacobean Sashiko Kogin-zashi Bunka shishu Kaitag Kantha Kasuti Korean Macedonian Mountmellick Nakshi kantha Persian Rasht Sermeh Sistan Zardozi Opus Anglicanum Rushnyk Sewed muslin Ukrainian Vietnamese Vyshyvanka
Embroideries	Butler-Bowden Cope Bayeux Tapestry Bradford carpet Great Tapestry of Scotland Great Tapestry of Scotland: People's Panel Hastings Embroidery Hestia tapestry Magna Carta (An Embroidery) Margaret Layton's jacket New World Tapestry Overlord Embroidery Oxburgh Hangings Prestonpans Tapestry Quaker Tapestry Scottish Diaspora Tapestry Fragments of a Cope with the Seven Sacraments
Designersand embroiderers	Emilie Bach Leon Conrad Shahin Ebrahimzadeh-Pezeshki Kaffe Fassett Juanita Growing Thunder Fogarty Constance Howard Marilyn Leavitt-Imblum François Lesage Ann Macbeth May Morris Jessie Newbery Mahtab Norouzi Tetiana Protcheva Charles Germain de Saint Aubin Mary Elizabeth Turner Dimitri Vlachos - Castano Kathleen Whyte Erica Wilson Lily Yeats
Organizationsand museums	Embroiderers' Guild (UK) Embroiderers' Guild of America Embroidery Software Protection Coalition Needlework Development Scheme Royal School of Needlework Wemyss School of Needlework Chung Young Yang Embroidery Museum Han Sang Soo Embroidery Museum
Related	Appliqué Crochet Knitting Lace Needlework Quilting

v t e Islamic art
Architecture	Regional styles Abbasid Ayyubid Anatolian Seljuk Chinese Fatimid Great Seljuk Hausa Indo-Islamic Bengali Bahmani and Deccan Mughal Indonesian / Malaysian Iranian Mamluk Moorish Ottoman Sudano-Sahelian Swahili Tatar Timurid Umayyad Yemeni Elements Ablaq Banna'i Iwan Jali Mashrabiya Mihrab Minaret Mocárabe Muqarnas Sitara Stucco decoration See also Decoration
Arts	Regional styles Bangladeshi Persian (Early, Qajar, Safavid) Turkish (Ottoman) Carpets Gul Kilim Motifs Persian Turkish Prayer Pottery Fritware Hispano-Moresque Iznik Lustreware Mina'i ware Persian Chinese influence Textiles Batik Damask Ikat Embroidery Soumak Suzani Woodwork Khatam Minbar Other media Music Brass Damascus steel Enamelled glass Glass Hardstone carving Ivory carving Mosque lamp Stained glass Shabaka
Arts of the book	Miniatures Arabic Mughal Ottoman Persian Calligraphy Arabic Diwani Indo-Muslim Kufic Muhaqqaq Naskh Nastaliq Persian Sini Taliq Thuluth Tughra Other arts Muraqqa Hilya Ottoman illumination
Decoration	Arabesque Geometric patterns Girih (tiles) Zellij See also Calligraphy
The garden	Charbagh Mughal Ottoman Paradise Persian
Museums, collections	Berlin Cairo Doha Ghazni Istanbul (Arts, Calligraphy Art) Jerusalem (Islamic Museum, Museum for Islamic Art, Jerusalem) Kuala Lumpur London (British Museum, V&A, Khalili Collection) Los Angeles Marrakech (Museum, Majorelle Garden) Melbourne Paris (Arab World Institute, Louvre) Singapore Toronto (Aga Khan) Tripoli
Exhibitions	Empire of the Sultans Heaven on Earth: Art from Islamic Lands Hajj: Journey to the Heart of Islam
Principles, influences	Islamic Art: Mirror of the Invisible World Aniconism in Islam Indo-Saracenic Revival Islamic world contributions to Medieval Europe Influences on Western art Grotesque Moresque Mathematics and architecture Moorish Revival Mudéjar Oriental carpets in Renaissance painting Pseudo-Kufic Stilfragen Topkapı Scroll

• Culture of Kazakhstan
• Embroidery
• Culture of Uzbekistan
• Culture of Tajikistan