Kazakh Felt and Cloth Embroidery

Kazakh felt and cloth embroidery is a folk craft blooming on the steppe, found chiefly in the Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture of Xinjiang. Its motifs draw closely on nomadic life, the compositions often chain-symmetrical, the colours brilliant, the lines bold and the shapes generous; it entered the second national ICH list in 2008.

Felt embroidery is worked on rolled wool felt, cloth embroidery on cotton or velvet; the makers favour steppe motifs of horn, flower, mountain and river laid out in chain-symmetry, producing the heirloom flower-felt called syrmaq, used for cushions, bedding and dowry; doubled and tightly stitched, it is made to last through several generations.

Felt and cloth embroidery carries the nomadic life, aesthetic and family heritage of the Kazakhs, an essential part of their dress, dwelling and ritual culture, and holds unique value for the study of steppe folk art and the changing ways of nomadic life.

Kazakh embroidered felt and other works can be seen in the workshops and shops of Yining's Liuxing Jie and Kazanqi folk quarters.