Between the “Heavenly Thread”, the Home and the Market: Aspects of the Development of Spinning and Weaving in the Bulgarian Lands (12th – 14th Century)

Teodora K. Georgieva

Plovdiv University “Paisii Hilendarski'”

https://doi.org/10.53656/his2025-3-5-bet

Abstract. This article presents the development of the crafts of spinning and weaving through various aspects, from the domestic space to their role in exchange. The study presents the ideological interpretations towards the mentioned activities in the context of the economic development in the period of the XII – XIV centuries. The topic examines the practice of spinning and weaving from the space of the home dominated by women and their role in the economy, through the symbolism of spinning as an expression of spiritual refinement and an allegory of divine creation, to the real economic setting and the realization of the production of spinning and weaving in exchange.

Through comparative analysis and analogical examples with information from Byzantine and Serbian texts, combined with a review of the archaeological findings, frescoes and miniatures, the main conclusions and implications on the topic are drawn.

On the one hand, spinning is seen as a metaphor for the continuous pursuit of spiritual perfection and perseverance in prayer. It is seen as an allegory for divine creation. Frescoes and miniatures from Bulgarian monuments reveal the symbolism of spinning and weaving. As for the actual discourse on the subject, the evidence suggests that spinning and weaving in Bulgarian lands found a place in regional trade. Moreover, as an professional category of the population, craftsmen were predominantly male, while women played a secondary role. They took care of making clothing for family members and practiced spinning and weaving mainly at home.

In the everyday rhythm of the medieval Bulgarian, religious and moral norms, moral postulates, determining the collective mentality and influencing the everyday life of the population, syncretize. Among all this stands the economic development, characterized by its intensity in the period of XIII – XIV centuries. Handicrafts related to the production of fabrics, cloth, and clothing had a greater share in regional trade than in international trade. These activities continued to exist in the domestic space during the Ottoman period. And even to this day, crossing the threshold of the temple.

Keywords: Middle Ages, Bulgarian lands, spinning, weaving, craftsmanship, symbolism

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