Sofia, Dec 18 (BTA/GNA) – A temporary exposition titled “Bulgarian Felted Textiles – A Message from Antiquity” gathers in the halls of the National Ethnographic Museum (NEM) some of the most valuable samples of Bulgarian felts from the collections of several museums. The exhibition can be viewed until March 9, 2025 in the NEM halls in Sofia.
Among the exhibits are samples from the collections of the Plovdiv Regional Ethnographic Museum, the Koprivshtitsa Directorate of Museums and the National Ethnographic Museum with the – BAS, organizers said Tuesday.
The exhibits, made by the ancient technology of wool felting, show the beauty and richness of this type of non-woven textiles in their variety of colours, ornaments and compositions. The most commonly used colours are the natural wool colours of white, brown, grey as well as colours achieved with natural dyes: yellow, red, green, blue, purple, from paler to more saturated shades. The ornaments that the master felters used include geometric, vegetal, animal and astral symbols.
Apart from the late 19th to early 20th century felts, the exhibition shows some contemporary examples of this craft. All of them are property of the Regional Ethnographic Museum in Plovdiv.
One of the exhibition’s centrepieces is a reconstruction of a Protobulgarian yurt. The model, designed by Svetlana Kamps, is made with felts decorated with many symbols coming from the ancient motifs on the felted carpets – sun, home, continuation of the clan, which pass through generations the magic and messages of this cultural heritage.
GNA/BTA