Burmese SPDC members greet Abhisit Vejjajiva

''Acheik'' (; ) or ''luntaya acheik'' (လွန်းတစ်ရာအချိတ်; ), is the name of the indigenous Burmese textile pattern. It features intricate waves interwoven with bands of horizontal stripes, embellished with

arabesque The arabesque is a form of artistic decoration consisting of "surface decorations based on rhythmic linear patterns of scrolling and interlacing foliage, tendrils" or plain lines, often combined with other elements. Another definition is "Foli ...

designs. ''Luntaya'' (; ), which literally means a "hundred shuttles," refers to the time-consuming, expensive, and complex process of weaving this pattern, which requires using 50 to 200 individual shuttles, each wound with a different color of silk. The weaving is labor-intensive, requiring at least two weavers to manipulate the shuttles to achieve the interwoven wave-like patterns. Acheik htamains

''Acheik'' is most commonly used as a textile for male ''paso'' or female ''

htamein A longyi (; ) is a sheet of cloth widely worn in Burma (Myanmar). It is approximately long and wide. The cloth is often sewn into a cylindrical shape. It is worn around the waist, running to the feet, and held in place by folding fabric over wi ...

.'' The color palettes used in ''acheik'' incorporate a bold array of contrasting shades in a similar color range to create a shimmering ''

trompe-l'œil ''Trompe-l'œil'' ( , ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a two-dimensional surface. ''Trompe l'oeil'', which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into ...

'' effect. Designs for men feature simpler zig-zag, cable and interlocking lappet motifs, while those for women interweave undulating waves with arabesque embellishments such as floral motifs or creepers.

Production

The towns of Amarapura and

Wundwin Wundwin ( my, ဝမ်းတွင်းမြို့) is a town in the Mandalay Region of central Myanmar. Wundwin, alongside Amarapura, is a major domestic center of traditional ''acheik'' weaving, although in recent years, cheaper factory- ...

remain major domestic centers of traditional ''acheik'' weaving, although in recent years, cheaper factory-produced imitations from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

have significantly disrupted Myanmar's traditional

cottage industry The putting-out system is a means of subcontracting work. Historically, it was also known as the workshop system and the domestic system. In putting-out, work is contracted by a central agent to subcontractors who complete the project via remote ...

Origins

''Acheik'' weaving originates in

Amarapura Amarapura ( my, အမရပူရ, MLCTS=a. ma. ra. pu ra., , ; also spelt as Ummerapoora) is a former capital of Myanmar, and now a township of Mandalay city. Amarapura is bounded by the Irrawaddy river in the west, Chanmyathazi Township in t ...

, near the

Pahtodawgyi Pahtodawgyi ( my, ပုထိုးတော်ကြီး) is a Buddhist pagoda located in Amarapura, Burma, north of the Taungthaman Lake. It was built in 1819 by King Bagyidaw Bagyidaw ( my, ဘကြီးတော်, ; also known as ...

pagoda. The name ''acheik'' may derive from the name of the quarter in which the weavers lived, ''Letcheik'' Row (လက်ချိတ်တန်း); the term itself was previously called ''waik'' (ဝိုက်), referring to the woven zig-zag pattern. While some sources claim that the ''acheik'' pattern was introduced by Manipuri weavers during the late 1700s, there are no comparable Manipuri textiles that resemble ''acheik''. The wave-like patterns may have in fact been inspired by Neolithic motifs and natural phenomena (i.e., waves, clouds, indigenous flora and fauna). ''Acheik''-type designs are found on pottery dating back to the

Pyu city states , conventional_long_name = Pyu city-states , common_name = Pyu City States , era = Classical antiquity , status = City , event_start = Earliest Pyu presence in Upper Burma , year_start = c. 2nd century BCE , date_start = , event_en ...

(400s-900s CE), as well as in temple wall paintings dating back to the

Bagan Kingdom The Kingdom of Pagan ( my, ပုဂံခေတ်, , ; also known as the Pagan Dynasty and the Pagan Empire; also the Bagan Dynasty or Bagan Empire) was the first Burmese kingdom to unify the regions that would later constitute modern-da ...

era (1000s-1200s CE). Tributary gifts bestowed to the Burmese royal court may also have provided an additional source of inspiration. The textile became popular during the

Konbaung dynasty The Konbaung dynasty ( my, ကုန်းဘောင်ခေတ်, ), also known as Third Burmese Empire (တတိယမြန်မာနိုင်ငံတော်) and formerly known as the Alompra dynasty (အလောင်းဘ ...

, during which

sumptuary law Sumptuary laws (from Latin ''sūmptuāriae lēgēs'') are laws that try to regulate consumption. '' Black's Law Dictionary'' defines them as "Laws made for the purpose of restraining luxury or extravagance, particularly against inordinate expendi ...

s regulated who could wear ''acheik'' clothing. The ''acheik'' pattern was exclusively worn by members of the royal court, officials, and their entourages.

References

{{Textile arts Burmese clothing Ceremonial clothing Burmese culture Silk Woven fabrics Handicrafts

Silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the coc ...

Textile techniques

Production

Origins

See also

References