Description

Antique Prayer Gartel Girdle handmade. An antique prayer gartel girdle made in the Kurdish parts of Turkey and worn by Kurd Jews. It is made from pure lamb wool and silver and gold threads. It is made from pure orange colored wool and green colored silk.  Itwas made during the nineteenth century and is well preserved and in very good condition. Buyer is responsible for local import tax payments.

Dimension length 157 cm without the green silk fringes. The green silk fringes measure 60 cm on each side. The unfolded width of the gartel girdle once opened measures 19.5 cm approximately.

The gartel girdel is used during the daily prayers by male Jews. It is a belt made from strong thread used to surround the waist so as to prepare yourself for the prayers in front of G-D.  The gartel girdle differentiate between the upper spiritual part of your body and the lower material physical part with the genitals and legs. It is mainly a Hassidic tradition but other congregations do use them. The Kurds and some hassidic groups do use them not only for prayer, but for they daily use instead of a regular belt such as Belz and Skwer

That is why it is different from the well known gartel girdle used these days. Today the Hassidim use a very humble looking black threaded gartel girdle.

In many religions as well as societies in ancient times, it was common to wear gartel girdles as  for religious sacrileges or for carrying a knife or any kind of weapon.