Product Description
Yao Tribal Comb
Material: Bone, cotton, beads
Style: Bone, cotton, beads
Size: Comb: Height 13 cm, Width 8 cm; Central tassel: Height 37 cm; Side tassels: Height 18 cm
Order Number: MHSHNR1
This Yao woman’s comb was worn at the back of the head. The Yao woman’s headdress was worn at the front of the head. The etched decoration on the bone tines was made using pyrography, a technique where decorations are burned into the bone using a heated object, such as a poker.
Pyrography means ‘writing with fire’, from the Greek pur (fire) and graphos (writing). It’s been practised since the dawn of time, including by the Ancient Egyptians.
The comb also has cotton threads, black and white glass beads and a huge purple pom pom in the middle.
Many visitors to Northern Thailand will have seen Yao people. The women wear turbans and a flowing gown with a red woolly collar and hand embroidered trousers. They carry their youngest child on their backs in a decorated cloth babycarrier. The men wear indigo jackets with silver buttons.
They are scattered in many parts of South China, Vietnam, Thailand and Laos and practise slash and burn agriculture, producing mainly rice for themselves and maize for their poultry and pigs. They also grow opium.
The Yao are a very ancient minority. During the last 1,000 years they have migrated slowly from central China to the southern provinces and from there to north Vietnam, northern Thailand and northern Laos.
Reference to Yao was made first in a T’ang dynasty (618-906 AD) document – mo yao – meaning ‘not subject to compulsory service’. It probably indicates a settlement following a Yao rebellion. The mo was dropped during the Sung dynasty (960-1279 AD).
They broke up into several groups and sub-groups. They speak four main languages. The largest segment, about two-thirds of the Yao population, are the Mien and Mun language speakers.
The Yao have a close affinity with silver and it unifies all the Yao groups. They wear it every day and believe it keeps their souls within their bodies. A good part of their savings was invested in silver and passed down the generations. They did not use gold.
The White Hmong and the Green Hmong are two sub-groups of the Miao people. The majority live in South China. During World War II the Chinese tried to stop them speaking their own language or wearing their distinctive dress, but they failed.
Many migrated to Laos. By 1850 they were established in the mountains around Luang Prabang. By the end of the 19th century there were several Hmong villages in Thailand. In 1984 there were 245 villages.
Please ask for the price (or make an offer).
