A tubeteika is an old national men’s headdress. The word “tubeteika” comes from the Turkic “tyube”, which means “top”. The headdress is an adornment and an important element of the men’s national and religious costume.
A tubeteika is a small skullcap that fits on top of the head and has a hemispherical shape. The shape and ornament of this small hat tell about the nationality and class its wearer belongs to.
A tubeteika was most often made from four wedge-shaped pieces. This design was symbolical, since each wedge represented a certain period of a person’s life: childhood, adolescence, young and old age. Tubeteikas were sewn from satin, chintz, velveteen, plush, and velvet. Two techniques — stitching and embroidery — were used to decorate festive plush or velvet tubeteikas. Everyday tubeteikas were most often plain. Young and middle-aged men wore tubeteikas made of colored red, green, and dark blue fabric. Festive tubeteikas of young men were decorated with lace, beads, sequins, small pearls, and embroidered with tambour patterns. Elderly men wore dark tubeteikas.
Tubeteikas can be round and square. They are sewn from soft fabric, and there is a certain specific detail: the lining is attached to the top with small stitches, so the inside part of the cap becomes ribbed.
The process of making headwear had a number of separate stages, and each craftswoman (the cutter, stitcher, and embroiderer) performed only her part of the work. The pattern is embroidered separately: first — the upper part, then — the edge. Previously, embroidery was done only by hand, now special machines are used. The embroidered parts of the future tubeteika are lined with cotton fabric. To make a tubeteika keep its shape, twisted glued paper is inserted into the lines that had been stitched in the bottom. The same glue-impregnated paper is inserted between the front and back parts. Thus, tubeteikas keep their shape and can be used for a long time.
The museum’s extensive collection of headdresses includes a blue, velvet, cone-shaped tubeteika. The lining is made from crimson chintz. The exhibit was donated to the museum by Nurzia Sirachetdinova.
A tubeteika is a small skullcap that fits on top of the head and has a hemispherical shape. The shape and ornament of this small hat tell about the nationality and class its wearer belongs to.
A tubeteika was most often made from four wedge-shaped pieces. This design was symbolical, since each wedge represented a certain period of a person’s life: childhood, adolescence, young and old age. Tubeteikas were sewn from satin, chintz, velveteen, plush, and velvet. Two techniques — stitching and embroidery — were used to decorate festive plush or velvet tubeteikas. Everyday tubeteikas were most often plain. Young and middle-aged men wore tubeteikas made of colored red, green, and dark blue fabric. Festive tubeteikas of young men were decorated with lace, beads, sequins, small pearls, and embroidered with tambour patterns. Elderly men wore dark tubeteikas.
Tubeteikas can be round and square. They are sewn from soft fabric, and there is a certain specific detail: the lining is attached to the top with small stitches, so the inside part of the cap becomes ribbed.
The process of making headwear had a number of separate stages, and each craftswoman (the cutter, stitcher, and embroiderer) performed only her part of the work. The pattern is embroidered separately: first — the upper part, then — the edge. Previously, embroidery was done only by hand, now special machines are used. The embroidered parts of the future tubeteika are lined with cotton fabric. To make a tubeteika keep its shape, twisted glued paper is inserted into the lines that had been stitched in the bottom. The same glue-impregnated paper is inserted between the front and back parts. Thus, tubeteikas keep their shape and can be used for a long time.
The museum’s extensive collection of headdresses includes a blue, velvet, cone-shaped tubeteika. The lining is made from crimson chintz. The exhibit was donated to the museum by Nurzia Sirachetdinova.
