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ACraftIndependent states

Kelaghayi

Women's silk headscarves block-printed with patterns, a UNESCO-listed craft since 2014.

Making a kelaghayi
Rəcəb Yaxşı / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

The kelaghayi is a square silk headscarf. The silk is dyed with natural colours and then block-printed with wooden stamps; the most famous motif is the buta.

Colour carries meaning: red and crimson scarves are worn at weddings and holidays, black ones in mourning. Shaki and Basgal are the best-known centres.

"Traditional art and symbolism of Kelaghayi, making and wearing women's silk headscarves" was inscribed on UNESCO's intangible heritage list in 2014.

Sources

  1. UNESCO Intangible Heritage — Traditional art and symbolism of Kelaghayi

Updated: October 1, 2026

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