Unknown Maker, Uyghur

Woven in northwestern China, this veil is decorated with embroidered openwork. The black band rested under the wearer’s eyes, across the bridge of her nose. The solid central patch protected her mouth from blowing sand. Paired with a hijab or headscarf, only the wearer’s eyes would be visible.

This textile was likely worn by a Uyghur woman. Descending from Mongol and Turkic peoples, the Uyghurs have been Muslim for more than a thousand years. Like many other minorities who inhabit resource-rich land, they have long been the target of a government wanting access to those resources. In 2018, the United Nations estimated that the Chinese government was detaining one million Uyghurs in “re-education” camps.