Hand drawlooms
The date and place of birth of the hand drawlooms is not precisely known. Some historians speak of Byzance, others of the Sassanid Empire (in today's Iran, between the 3rd and the 7th Centuries). But it is certain that this hand loom, which is extremely complex, was exported afterwards to many countries: China (probably after the Tang, in the 10th Century), Central Asia, India (most likely in the 14th Century), Spain, Morocco, Italy, France. Despite several developments created in the different countries where they had been adopted, all hand drawlooms follow the same fundamental scheme.
Everywhere, hand drawlooms comprise two warps, one for the ground and one for the pattern. The threads of these warps are pulled up and down thanks to two sets of heddle frames, which depend on two different mechanisms: on the one hand the treadles, operated by the weaver, on the other hand the figure harness system, consisting of cords and lashes where the pattern is programmed, operated by a draw man.
Fez hand drawloom - © Hassane Kabil
To view the video of a hand drawloom in activity in our workshop, click here.
Since the 19th Century, the hand drawloom has been supplanted by its direct offshoot, created in Lyon by Joseph-Marie Jacquard. So that the hand drawlooms are now often reduced to be museum pieces.
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