A glimpse into the art of Pan Bafi in Alamut

Pan Bafi, a traditional textile weaving, is a prominent handicraft being practiced in Alamut of the Qazvin province.

Also called Navar Bafi or Kart Bafi, it is the art of weaving a kind of narrow strip with a width of one to two centimeters.

Mostly woven by Alamut women, the strip are often used in the clothing and clothes design industry for decorating the collars, edges of skirts or sleeves, belts, shoelaces, ties, baby swaddling clothes, and other accessories.

And if it is made from thick yarns, the Pan Bafi can be used to set up tents or tie the muzzles of horses or camels, too. 

The basic materials of Pan Bafi are natural and synthetic yarns. But they are usually woven from a kind of silk yarn called ‘Kaj’ yarn.

One of the traits of Pan Bafi is the traditional dyeing of the yarns. Natural materials such as mulberry leaves (for golden pigments), onion skin (orange), walnut skin (brown), and Nirask (a kind of wild barberry) are used to dye the yarns.

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