Osku, Iran’s capital of 500-year-old Batik dyeing industry

The northwestern Iranian city of Osku in East Azarbaijan Province is known as the capital of Batik dyeing industry, which is traditional coloring on textile fabrics especially silk.

Batik, a technique of wax-resist dyeing which originated in Indonesia, is used in crafting handmade shawls.

In this method parts of fabric are covered with a resistant material that makes the dye pass into the fabric and then create intended designs by specific methods.

In the region of Osku, there is a kind of silk fabric known as Kalagheh’i which is dyed using the special method of Batik. The only region of Iran where Batik prints are practiced since 500 years ago is Eastern Azarbaijan.  

But some specialists believe that since Azarbaijan is located in the path of Silk Road, this print has entered Iran from China.

Dyeing silk fabrics is hard and complex, but Iranian dyers create dyes with different shades of using only natural and no chemical material.

As the most important art industry in Osku, Batik was incorporated in Iran's spiritual heritage to the national record in 2010. Batik products in Osku city are currently exported to Germany, the United States, Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Turkmenistan.

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