Tradition · Questions
What is the qabbeh of a thobe?
The qabbeh is the square or rectangular chest panel of a Palestinian thobe, embroidered on a separate piece of cloth and then set into the front of the dress. Because it was worked before assembly, more than one embroiderer could contribute to a single garment, and its motifs varied by region.
The qabbeh (قبة) is the panel the eye goes to first, and the one museum catalogues describe most closely. It is worked on its own piece of cloth and then set into the front of the dress, which means the panel could be made by a different hand from the rest of the garment.
On the Victoria and Albert Museum's dress T.65-1913 the chest-panel embroidery is symmetrical, terminates in a pointed Daraj (درج), or step, motif, and is flanked by a Shajaret Hubb (شجرة الحب), or love tree, on either side. That record names the motifs; it does not explain why they carry those names, and no symbolic reading follows from the naming alone.
The qabbeh is one of several separately embroidered panels. The others include the shinyar (شنيار) at the lower back, the banayiq (بنايق) in the side seams, and the irdan (أردان) sleeves — all worked before the dress was assembled.