Besht attributed “Messi” when the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad, and FIFA President, during the coronation of the Argentine national team in the 2022 World Cup, recalled the history of the muslimah industry in Qatar and the Arabian Gulf, whose roots extend in the Arab Gulf states.
International cameras monitored “Messi” among his teammates in the Argentine national team and the cloak on his shoulders, while the Qataris and many tweeters and followers in the Gulf countries celebrated this image with the bisht, as a symbol of Qatari and Arab culture, which caused widespread sales of the bisht in Qatar and the Arabian Gulf.
Specialists in the manufacture of bishout in Qatar revealed that the profession has been rooted since 1930 and came from Al-Ahsa, eastern Saudi Arabia, through the influx of craftsmen and skilled in knitting and sewing muslimahs, bringing the current price of hand-made bisht in Qatar to 9 thousand riyals, according to the material and type of zari used, and it needs to be made manually. It takes 10 days, and it goes through several stages, the first of which is the haila, followed by the touq stage, then the qursh, then the maqsar, then the bardakh, and finally the installation of the string.
Bisht sewing
The bisht maker in Al-Ahsa – eastern Saudi Arabia – Muhammad al-Qattan told Al-Arabiya.net: The bisht that the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad, gave to the player “Messi” is of a luxurious type, because the fabric from which this bisht was made is of hand-woven Najaf cloth. It can cost more than 6,000 Saudi riyals, and it is a transparent Najafi summer bisht.
Regarding naming the bisht that was presented to Messi as the Qatari abaya, Al-Qattan stressed that the handmade bisht has its source and origins in Al-Ahsa. It is still the first source of bashout at the level of the Arabian Gulf.
In the details that Al-Qattan narrated regarding the secret of the Al-Hasawiya bashout, he mentioned that the manual ones are made from fabrics that are made in Al-Hasa, including the tufted fabric, and there are well-known carvings, including the royal one, which is known in all the Gulf countries, and there are types of it, including the expanded, the brick, and the mokhamus, which are the most famous carvings, and various types of carvings. Al-Zari is the “shiny thread”, and one of the most famous is the German Al-Zari.
Messi raises the World Cup wearing a bisht
Bishout varieties
Bashout fabrics vary, and they are summer, winter and spring. The winter cloth, which is made of lint and wool, is used in cold winter weather. In summer, light cloth is used in weddings or formal occasions. As for the spring, it is used in seasons between summer and winter. There are also different types of bashouts. It comes in the German first class, there are Indian sarees, and German and French sarees are used.
It is mentioned that there are many types of bisht, according to the fabric, and the najafi cloth is the highest price and the best. There is also Japanese cloth, which is widely circulated and worn in social events such as weddings and conferences. The most popular is the Japanese najafi cloth, which is of the same quality that Messi wore during his coronation. World Cup 2022, and it is one of the best types of bishout.
Al-Ahsa is the source of Gulf bashout
Al-Ahsa region is considered the main supplier of Al-Mashleh to the Saudi and Gulf markets. It is considered one of the centers of the bashout industry in eastern Saudi Arabia, and from there the industry moved through the migrations of artisan families to the Gulf countries, the Levant and Iraq, and the sons of those families inherited the profession.
It is characterized by embroidering the edges of the openings with zari threads, as it is an official dress worn by statesmen, notables, and senior figures of the country, as well as worn by grooms at the wedding ceremony.
The Hassawi bisht is characterized by the quality of its craftsmanship, hand-woven, and Zari threads, which are silk threads that usually take golden and silver colors.
