KNITTED SOCKS

Felt stockings dating back from 500 to 600 B.C. were found in excavated Kurgan (burial mounds), along the Altay Mountains in Central Asia. These stockings had patterned upper-leg sections resembling traditional Turkish peasant knitted stockings suggesting a connection with ancient Turkish culture. It is also interesting to note that felt stockings were worn in Anatolia until not very long ago.

Wool is the raw material of stockings, with traditional dyes extracted from roots, barks, alum, leaves, flowers, fruit, seeds and insects. Their motifs and colors are like a silent language. Each stocking has a name and a district. Variations of the arrangements of motifs are made according to the age, marital status, identity and position of the one to wear them.

Two excellent references on the subject are:

Ozbel, Prof. Kenan. Knitted Stockings from Turkish villages. Is Bankasi Cultural Publications: Istanbul, 1981

Zilboorg, Anne. Fancy Feet. Lark Books: Asheville, North Carolina, 1994.