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'Handbook of Mesopotamia. Vol. I. 1918' [227] (236/568)
The record is made up of 1 volume (282 folios). It was created in 1918. It was written in English, Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Armenian, Kurdish and Syriac. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
COMMEECE AND INDUSTRY 227
for the construction of the Hindiyeh Barrage and the Baghdad Rail-
way praetieall 7 cover the whole extent to which modern mechanical
methods were used in production.
Weaving.- There is a certain amount of hand-weaving in silk
b S in t ? e ,. t0Wns and villa S es ^ Mesopotamia. At
-Baghdad, Diarbekr, and Mosul weaving ranks as a principal industry
with tanning and working in leather; it is fairly important at some
other places, e. g. Nejef, Kirkuk, and Mardln.
The production of silk tissues supplies the greater part of the local
demand and maintains an export trade to other parts of Turkey, to
t0 Per f ia - - The Chief centres of the industry are
Baghdad (with Kazimain) and Diarbekr ; it exists also at Neief, Mosul
and elsewhere. At Baghdad a kind of silken thread is used which
is said to be a vegetable product; it is called shdri, but the name is
also given to Assam or ' Moga' silk imported from Calcutta.
Cotton and woollen fabrics are woven at Baghdad, Mosul, Diarbekr,
Mara in, and other places in upper and lower Mesopotamia. For cotton-
weavmg imported yarn is largely used (seep. 208); and imported wool
is in some demand for the finer fabrics made at Baghdad.
a f.^r n 7 g th . e : textl lf m j l " u f actured at Baghdad are (a silk
stuttj, alajafr (a cotton fabric), qutn (a mixture of silk and wool)
striped cotton piece-goods like those of Aleppo, and coarse cotton
. T f ese 7 m j lt f[ als ar e made into hafiyehs (head-kerchiefs),
(cloaks),^ sharshafs (sheets), tzars (women's outer garments),
(women s ve'ls), and zahuns (long body-garments worn by men).
The silk fabrics ot Baghdad are famous for their colour and work-
sheeting" arSe yai ' ns of local cott on are woven into ^ail-cloth and
Other towns in Irak where 'aba are made are Neief, Kerbela
Amara Su^ esh-Shuyukh, and Kurna. There is a good demand
at Baghdad for the alas of Amara; those of Kurna are famous for
their lightness ; Nejef produces silk 'abas embroidered with gold.
Shrouds inscribed^ with texts from the Koran are made at the Shiah
Holy Cities of Nejef and Kerbela. Woollen rugs and coarse carpets
durabCaf Amara ^ r0Ugh Cari)ets ' chea P but
At Diarbekr silk and cotton stuffs are the chief textile products.
The unbleached cotton cloth manufactured in the towns of upner
Mesopotamia is coarse but strong, and is largely used by Arabs and
Kurds. There is a small export of locally worn cotton stuffs and
woollen carpets from Arabistan.
The black goats'hair tents of the nomads and semi -nomads are
manufactured in the towns of Mesopotamia.
p 2
About this item
- Content
This volume is A Handbook of Mesopotamia, Volume I, General (Naval Staff, Intelligence Department: November 1918). This is an updated and expanded edition of A Handbook of Mesopotamia, Volume I, General (Admiralty War Staff, Intelligence Department: August 1916) (IOR/L/MIL17/15/41/1). This is an introductory volume containing matter of a general nature giving an account of conditions in Mesopotamia, for the most part as they were before the First World War.
The volume includes a note on official use, a title page and 'Note'. There is a page of 'Contents' that includes the following chapters and sections:
- Chapter 1: Boundaries and Physical Features;
- Chapter 2: Climate;
- Chapter 3: Minerals;
- Chapter 4: Fauna and Flora;
- Chapter 5: Hygiene;
- Chapter 6: History;
- Chapter 7: Inhabitants;
- Chapter 8: Religions;
- Chapter 9: Administration;
- Chapter 10: Irrigation of Irak [Iraq];
- Chapter 11: Agriculture and Land Tenure;
- Chapter 12: Commerce and Industry;
- Chapter 13: Currency, Weights, and Measures;
- Chapter 14: Communications and Transport;
- Vocabularies;
- Index.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (282 folios)
- Arrangement
The volume is arranged in numbered chapters. There is a contents page and an alphabetically arranged index.
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: The foliation sequence commences at the first folio and terminates at the last folio; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. of the folio.
Pagination: The volume also contains an original printed pagination sequence.
- Written in
- English, Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Armenian, Kurdish and Syriac in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/L/MIL/17/15/41/2
- Title
- 'Handbook of Mesopotamia. Vol. I. 1918'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, i-r:i-v, 1:556, ii-r:ii-v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence