Tally, embroidery done with gold and silver thread on tulle and other light fabrics, is associated with belly dancers’ glittery costumes and therefore looked down on by many Egyptians. But artist Saad Zaghloul is determined to restore the prestige and preserve the heritage of this dying craft.

Zaghloul founded a training center and museum in Assiut, Egypt, called the Tally House in 1994 to both save the craft and end its bad reputation. “Tally embroidery was used for making belly dancers' costumes in the early 1930s. This is why it was shunned by Egyptian families,” he explained to Al-Monitor. In fact, he added, the delicate embroidery was once part of a bride’s trousseau.

The special embroidery, which has been practiced for centuries, had its heyday in the 19th century, under the reign of Muhammad Ali Pasha in Egypt (1805-1848) when foreigners who were interested in Oriental delights from costumes to spices bought embroidered clothes and took them back to Europe — France, Italy and the British Empire. Some of these fabrics, shot through with gold or silver metallic threads, can be seen in European museums today.

The craft had a revival in the 1950s. Suleiman Hazin and Aziza al-Shaarani gave a great boost to the craft between 1955 and 1966, Zaghloul explained. “Hazin, who established and presided over of the University of Assiut, settled in Assiut with his wife, Shaarani. It was she who had a passion for tally, and she provided the silver and gold thread as well as the light fabrics to the women in the governorate, then got them to sell their embroidery to her friends,” he said.