The Bizarre Case of the Resemblance between the Embroideries of Assisi and Azemmour
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51185/journals/rhca.2026.stc02Keywords:
Morocco, Azemmour, Assisi, Emroidery, Women's History, Material Culture, Franciscan OrderAbstract
This article uncovers overlooked stories of women’s communication and knowledge exchange across the Mediterranean and proposes using embroidery, a craft predominantly practiced by women, to trace these exchanges. The discussion begins with the unique figural embroidery of Azemmour, a small Moroccan town, that is distinct form all other Moroccan embroideries. To explore the influences on the Azemmouri embroidery, the article turns to Assisi, Italy, where strikingly similar embroideries were produced. The article suggests that the Franciscan Order, founded in Assisi and present in Morocco since the thirteenth century, may have contributed to this exchange. By tracing this circulation, this investigation emphasizes the value of conducting “fragmented history,” which pieces together fragments of sources. The article argues that the circulation of embroideries across the Mediterranean enabled women in Assisi and Azemmour to establish nonverbal communication that transcended time and space.
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