Nomadic reindeer husbandry implies that man and reindeer are always in motion together. An elongated type of men’s outerwear was designed to adapt to such circumstances. Fur clothing is practically a second skin to nomads. Molshang (malitsa) is an everyday men’s winter and summer clothing, sewn from thin deerskin with the fur inward. Its quality crafted leather surface has good aerodynamic properties. The somewhat cone-like shape of this clothing, resembling a chum tent, helps to maintain steadiness even in a strong wind and contributes to the preservation and accumulation of heat in the upper part of the human body.
Molshang is a buttoned-up piece of clothing, pulled over the head. Even the seams of the molshang are designed to protect against the wind: they are strong enough to withstand some damage and even gusts. The seams are made in places that are less exposed to the wind. The construction of the seams is complicated, and some porous materials are used to fill the gaps. Even today there are seams with long, strong and beautiful deer hair. In women’s clothing, narrow cloth strips of various colors are inserted into the seam instead of a draught strip. The seam becomes elastic, flexible and dense at the same time; it is reliable and durable and also serves decorative purposes.
Malitsa features wide armholes for increased mobility, and the arms can be easily freed from the sleeves. As a rule, decorative patterns can be found only on the sleeves; sometimes, a pattern is used between the hem and the upper part.
Malitsa is sewn of 3–4 skins of nebluy (fur of young reindeer), and it stretches 20 cm below the knee. An essential element of the malitsa is a belt (ni), which is worn at the waist on top of a malitsa shirt. The belt symbolizes a man’s strength, and no woman should touch it, otherwise it will bring misfortune or trouble to the man and his trade. The belt is irreplaceable in any manly activity, be it deer breeding, hunting, or fishing, because all the necessary things — knives, sharpening stones, talismans — are attached to it. The belt fastens with a metal buckle. Since malitsa is quite oversize, there is a lapping formed by the belt in the upper part, which replaces a pocket and is used for keeping such things as tobacco pouches, pipes and other necessary items.
