Gold Embroidery Style Features of the Mishar Tatars of the Ulyanovsk Region

The article reveals the origins and style features of the gold embroidery of the Mishar Tatars of the Ulyanovsk Region. Though surrounded by a population that is not uniform in ethnic composition, including the Chuvash, Mordovian, Mari, Udmurt and Russian peoples, the Mishars have preserved the aesthetic preferences of their ancestors. For centuries, the bib — an element of the national costume — has maintained the visually expressed originality of its decorative design conditioned by the traditions characteristic of this local group. The gold embroidery was a hereditary female occupation; its technique, as well as unique ornamental elements, were imparted from mother to daughter. Samples of needlework by masters of the past indicate the uniqueness of the patterned finish as well as the main trends of its development. The design techniques include large floral elements arranged in a certain compositional order. Its artistic structure uses the principle of symmetry as a reflection of the balance and stability of the universe. The repetition of images symbolizes the cyclical nature of being and reproduction processes. The style features of the Ulyanovsk Mishars’ gold embroidery include the homotypic impregnated technique and the relief of finishing elements. The interpretation of the key character-symbol in the center, which combines solar and floral forms, is diverse. The stylistic features of the Mishars’ gold embroidery reflect the system of the spiritual values common to the Tatars that were feeding the artistic forms of decorative art, originally sourced by the Bulgarian urban culture of the Golden Horde period, and then the Kazan Khanate. For many centuries, the best samples were selected and polished in the course of time. The style-forming elements of the national costume components’ gold decoration were steadily reproduced. The tradition of their application allows us to assume that the ancestors of the modern Mishar Tatars living in the rural part of the Ulyanovsk Region were of urban origin.

gold embroidery, Mishar Tatars, folk art, style features, fine and decorative arts

1. Dulsky P.M. Iskusstvo kazanskikh tatar [Art of the Kazan Tatars]. Moscow, Tsentral’noe Izdatel’stvo Narodov SSSR Publ., 1925, 58 p.

2. Valeev F.Kh. Narodnoe dekorativnoe iskusstvo Tatarstana [Folk Decorative Art of Tatarstan]. Kazan, Tatarskoe Knizhnoe Publ., 1984, 188 p.

3. Valeeva-Suleimanova G.F. Dekorativnoe iskusstvo Tatarstana (1920-e — nachalo 1990-kh godov) [Decorative Art of Tatarstan (1920s — Beginning of the 1990s)]. Kazan, FEN Publ., 1995, 188 p.

4. Gulova F.F. Tatarskaya narodnaya vyshivka [Tatar Folk Embroidery]. Kazan, Tatarskoe Knizhnoe Publ., 1980, 80 p.

5. Ramazanova D.B. Nazvaniya odezhdy i ukrashenii v tatarskom yazyke v areal’nom aspekte [Names of Clothing and Jewelry in the Tatar Language in the Areal Aspect]. Kazan, Master Lain Publ., 2002, 352 p.

6. Akhmetyanov R.G. Etymological Dictionary of the Tatar Language. Kazan, Mәgarif — Vakyt Publ., vol. 2 (M—Ya), 2015, 567 p. (in Tatar).

7. Valeeva-Suleimanova G.F. Gold Embroidery, Tatarskaya entsiklopediya [Tatar Encyclopedia]. Kazan, Institut Tatarskoi Entsiklopedii Publ., 2005, pp. 490—492 (in Russ.).

8. Iskhakov D.M. On the Traditional-Folk and National Strata of Tatar Culture, Istoki i evolyutsiya khudozhestvennoi kul’tury tyurkskikh narodov: materialy Mezhdunarodnoi nauchno-prakticheskoi konferentsii, posvyashchennoi 150-letiyu so dnya rozhdeniya pedagoga-prosvetitelya, khudozhnika Sh.A. Tagirova (Kazan’, 17—18 aprelya 2008 g.) [Proceedings of the International Scientific and Practical Conference Dedicated to the 150th Birth Anniversary of the Teacher-Educator, Artist Sh.A. Tagirov “The Origins and Evolution of the Artistic Culture of the Turkic Peoples” (Kazan, April 17—18, 2008)]. Kazan, 2009, pp. 21—27 (in Russ.).

9. Valeeva-Suleimanova G.F. Tatar National Art: On the Issue of Ethno-Cultural Unity, Edinstvo tatarskoi natsii: materialy nauchnoi konferentsii AN RT “Tsivilizatsionnye, etnokul’turnye i politicheskie aspekty edinstva tatarskoi natsii” (Kazan’, 7—8 iyunya 2002 g.) [Unity of the Tatar Nation: Proceedings of the Scientific Conference of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan “Civilizational, Ethno-Cultural and Political Aspects of the Unity of the Tatar Nation” (Kazan, June 7—8, 2002)]. Kazan, FEN Publ., 2002, pp. 112—118 (in Russ.).

10. Suslova S.V. Costume of the Crimean Tatars: On the Issue of Ethno-Cultural Parallels with the Volga-Ural Tatars, Istoki i evolyutsiya khudozhestvennoi kul’tury tyurkskikh narodov. Seriya “Iskusstvo tyurkskogo mira”: materialy Mezhdunarodnoi nauchno-prakticheskoi konferentsii, posvyashchennoi 150-letiyu so dnya rozhdeniya pedagoga-prosvetitelya, khudozhnika Sh.A. Tagirova (Kazan’, 17—18 aprelya 2008 g.) [Proceedings of the International Scientific and Practical Conference

11. Dedicated to the 150th Birth Anniversary of the Teacher-Educator, Artist Sh.A. Tagirov “The Origins and Evolution of the Artistic Culture of the Turkic Peoples. Series “Art of the Turkic World”” (Kazan, April 17—18, 2008)]. Kazan, 2009, issue 1, p. 85 (in Russ.).

12. Sultanova R.R. In Skillful Hands, Everything Goes Well. Traditional Crafts and Applied Arts, Iz sokrovishchnitsy nauchnykh ekspeditsii. Natsional’no-kul’turnoe nasledie: Nizhnii Novgorod [From the Treasury of Scientific Expeditions. National and Cultural Heritage: Nizhny Novgorod]. Kazan, Medine Publ., 2011, pp. 209—236 (in Russ.).

13. Mukhamedova R.G. Tatarskaya narodnaya odezhda: al’bom [Tatar Folk Clothing: album]. Kazan, Tatarskoe Knizhnoe Publ., 1997, 224 p.

14. Mukhamedova R.G. Tatary-mishari: istoriko-etnograficheskoe issledovanie [The Mishar Tatars: Historical and Ethnographic Research]. Kazan, Magarif Publ., 2008, 292 p.

15. Kadyrov R.V. The Concept of “Tatar Service People” in the Russian State of the 16th — Early 18th Centuries. Theoretical and Methodological Approaches, Istoricheskie sud’by narodov Povolzh’ya i Priural’ya [Historical Destinies of the Peoples of the Volga and Ural Regions]. Kazan, 2010, issue 1, pp. 130—132 (in Russ.).

16. Trofimova T.A. Etnogenez Tatar Povolzh’ya v svete dannykh antropologii [Ethnogenesis of the Volga Tatars in the Light of Anthropology]. Moscow, Akademii Nauk SSSR Publ., 1949, 263 p.

17. Gabdullin I.R. On the Ethno-Class Evolution of the Turkic Population of the Ufa Uyezd (Governorate) in the 17th—19th Centuries, Edinstvo tatarskoi natsii: materialy nauchnoi konferentsii AN RT “Tsivilizatsionnye, etnokul’turnye i politicheskie aspekty edinstva tatarskoi natsii” (Kazan’, 7—8 iyunya 2002 g.) [Unity of the Tatar Nation: Proceedings of the Scientific Conference of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tatarstan “Civilizational, Ethno-Cultural and Political Aspects of the Unity of the Tatar Nation” (Kazan, June 7—8, 2002)]. Kazan, FEN Publ., 2002, pp. 214—237 (in Russ.).

18. Shklyaeva L.M. The Art of Embroidery of the Tatars of the Samara Region (Based on the Results of the Expedition in June-July 2014), Traditsionnaya kul’tura narodov Povolzh’ya: materialy II Vserossiiskoi nauchno-prakticheskoi konferentsii s mezhdunarodnym uchastiem (10—12 fevralya 2015) [Proceedings of the 2nd All-Russian Scientific-Practical Conference with International Participation “Traditional Culture of the Peoples of the Volga Region” (February 10—12, 2015)]. Kazan, Ikhlas Publ., 2015, pp. 659—666 (in Russ.).

19. Shklyaeva L.M. Embroidery of the Tatars of the Orenburg Region (Based on the Results of the Expedition in June 2015), Traditsionnaya kul’tura narodov Povolzh’ya: materialy III Vserossiiskoi nauchno-prakticheskoi konferentsii s mezhdunarodnym uchastiem (9—11 fevralya 2016 g.) [Proceedings of the 3rd All-Russian Scientific-Practical Conference with International Participation “Traditional Culture of the Peoples of the Volga Region” (February 9—11, 2016)], part 2 (M-Ya). Kazan, Ikhlas Publ., 2016, pp. 378—383 (in Russ.).

20. Zakirov R.Z. Ul’yanovskie tatary chtyat traditsii i obychai svoego naroda [The Ulyanovsk Tatars Honor the Traditions and Customs of their People]. Samara, 2005, 87 p.

21. Suslova S.V., Mukhamedova R.G. Narodnyi kostyum tatar Povolzh’ya i Urala (seredina XIX — nachalo XX vv.): istoriko-etnograficheskii atlas tatarskogo naroda [Folk Costume of the Tatars of the Volga and Ural Regions (The Middle of the 19th — Beginning of the 20th Centuries). Historical and Ethnographic Atlas of the Tatar People]. Kazan, FEN Publ., 2000, 311 p.

22. Shklyaeva L.M. Narodnoe iskusstvo domovoi rez’by u tatar Srednego Povolzh’ya serediny XX — nachala XXI veka. Semantika i stilevye osobennosti [The Folk Art of House Carving among the Tatars of the Middle Volga Region of the Mid-20th — Early 21st Century. Semantics and Style Features]. Kazan, TKS-Kontakt Publ., 2017, 141 p.

23. Gyul E. Sady nebesnye i sady zemnye: vyshivka Uzbekistana: skrytyi smysl sakral’nykh tekstov [The Gardens of Heaven and the Gardens of Earth: Embroidery of Uzbekistan: The Hidden Meaning of Sacred Texts]. Moscow, Mordzhani Publ., 2013, 207 p.

24. Kholikova N.Sh., Nuriddinova M.U. The Gold Embroidery Art of Bukhara, Molodoi uchenyi [Young Scientist], 2014, no. 8, pp. 298—301. Available at: http://moluch.ru/archive/67/11433 (accessed 14.05.2020) (in Russ.).

25. Akchurina-Muftieva N.M. O dekorativno-prikladnom iskusstve krymskikh tatar XV — pervoi poloviny XX vv. [On the Decorative and Applied Art of the Crimean Tatars of the 15th — First Half of the 20th Centuries]. Simferopol, Simferopol’skaya Gorodskaya Tipografiya Publ., 2008, 392 p.

26. Soboleva E.L. The Art of Crimea: Its History and Revival, Iskusstvo krymskikh tatar: katalog vystavki. Oktyabr’-noyabr’ 2013 [The Art of the Crimean Tatars: Exhibition Catalogue. October-November 2013]. Kazan, Zaman Publ., 2013, pp. 11—15 (in Russ.).

27. Sergeeva N.G. Drevo zhizni = Gomer agachy: tatarskaya vyshivka [Tree of Life: Tatar Embriodery]. Kazan, Magarif Publ., 2008, 78 p.

28. Faskhutdinova L.F. Gold Embroidery of the Mishar Tatars: Features of its Technique and Ornament, Etnograficheskoe obozrenie [Ethnographic Review], 2019, no. 4, pp. 169—176 (in Russ.).