Medium Suzani
Eleven pieces between one and two square metres — roughly 90 × 120 cm to 100 × 180 cm — which is the size that covers a dining table, a chest or a console, or hangs above one. This is also the section with the widest spread of schools: a Nurata piece, Bukhara work, a Tashkent palak and a Samarkand rosette piece sit side by side, three of them vintage and the rest new, at $54 to $320. Size, school and age are on every listing; one piece is machine-embroidered and says so.
Orders leave Bukhara within 24 hours by tracked airmail: USA 9–18 working days, Europe 8–16, elsewhere 10–20. The schools and the stitches are explained on the parent page.
What a medium suzani was
Not every dowry cloth was bed-sized. Sukhareva's work on Bukhara and Samarkand lists the smaller formats by use — the joynamoz prayer cloth with its arch, the takiyapush pillow cover, the wrap for a stack of folded quilts — and the pieces here are of that order: worked on three or four strips rather than six, finished in months rather than a winter. The joynamoz arch, when you see one, is the give-away that a piece was made to face a wall, and it hangs the same way now.
On a table or a wall
A 100 × 140 cm piece covers a dining table for four with a drop at the ends, or a chest of drawers with the embroidery falling over the front; a 100 × 180 cm piece runs the length of a six-seat table. On a wall, a medium suzani hangs from a batten sleeve like the large ones, or from a length of plain cotton tape sewn along the top and looped over a rod. Under plates and glasses, use a cloth over the embroidery; silk does not like red wine.
Vintage or new
Three pieces are Soviet-era, with faded corners and mended edges shown in the photographs; the rest are new. None are antiques under Uzbekistan's export law. For the difference between a Nurata spray and a Bukhara rosette, read the regional schools on the parent page, or write to us with the room and we will suggest.
Frequently asked questions
What size is a medium suzani?
At Alesouk, one to two square metres: roughly 90 × 120 cm to 100 × 180 cm, with the exact size on every listing. It is the size for a dining table, a chest or a wall above a console.
Can I use a suzani as a tablecloth?
Yes, with a plain cloth over the embroidered field where plates and glasses go. A 100 × 140 cm piece suits a table for four; 100 × 180 cm runs a six-seat table.
How much does a medium suzani cost?
$54 to $320 at Alesouk, depending on age, school and how densely it is embroidered.
Which regions are the medium suzanis from?
This section holds a Nurata piece, Bukhara work, a Tashkent palak and a Samarkand piece; the school is stated on each listing where it is known.
Are they hand-embroidered?
Ten of the eleven are hand-embroidered in silk on cotton; one is machine-embroidered and labelled. Three are vintage Soviet-era pieces.
Do you ship to the USA and UK?
Yes, worldwide by tracked airmail from Bukhara, Uzbekistan, within 24 hours: USA 9–18 working days, Europe and the UK 8–16, elsewhere 10–20.