Handicraft, a photo from Medenine, South

Photographer's Note

Ok, I know this is a bit of a tourist snapshot, but perhaps you like it for its colors and the documental value.

It was shot in the ksar of Medenine, which was subject of my last post of Tunisia.

It displays some of the more popular tourist oriented handicraft sold in Tunisia. Going from the foreground to the background, we have the painted snakes made of little cylinders of wood attached by a thread, something that you can see also in Morocco and Egypt; the "magic camels", which are pots supposedly made in Djerba, with an intricate internal design that doesn't allow the liquid flowing from the top even when they are upside down; the other painted ceramic artifacts, most of them originally from Nabeul, in the North, close to the beach resort of Hammamet, but others probably imported from Morocco (namely those on the left); the tiles with the "hand of Fatima" (see note below); the drums or tablas; and finally, on the top left, the "desert or sand roses".

The latter are much tipically Tunisian. They are crystals of gypsum (calcium sulphate). The gypsum is normally white, but because these crystals are formed in the sand dunes of the Sahara, they trap sand inside them, so they get that brown color that makes them look like petrified sand. They come in all sizes, from the tiny ones with diameters of only 2 or 3 cms to the rather huge ones with volumes aproaching one cubic meter.

The "hand of Fatima" is a powerful amulet to bring good luck and against the "evil eye", a kind of enchantment that brings bad luck, a rather common superstition all over the Mediterranean. "Officially" it's the representation of the favourite daughter of the Prophet Moahmmed, Fatima, its five fingers representing the five points of the pentagram star of Islam, which in turn represents the five pillars of Faith and the five daily prayers, but many claim that it is a pre-Islam symbol, maybe of the Cartaginean/Phoenician godess Tanit. Hands of Fatima and stylised fishes (another charm against the evil eye) are seen all over, most notably on doors and walls. For what I saw and read, Tunisians (and Moroccans also) are quite superstitious and I am not sure if all those charms and the de facto adoration of saints isn't a bit contradictory with strict Islam.

I never knew what that yellow sun face means, but I suspect that it must be another charm with some misterious powers.

This is my 4th post of Tunisian handicraft. You can look for the other ones in this TE travelogue.

zeca, robertosalguero, clnaef, tigra, maltese, everlasting, cuneyt-sb, parbo, etiennejr, vagabondtravels, deblink, maloutim, vinicio has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

zeca (19762) 2007-02-02 1:32

Ol� Jos�!
Percebo que voc� tem o 髏imo habito de fotografar objetos t韕icos dos locais por onde passa, o que � muito legal. Adoro estes detalhes e estas coisas! Muito boa a qualidade da foto! Gostaria de pendurar um prato destes na minha cole玢o na parede de casa!
Abra鏾,
Zeca

robertosalguero (292) 2007-02-02 2:35

Jose this picture clearly shows a cultural element of this country. The colorful pottery is similar to the one I am familiar with. Very artistically handcrafted souvenirs that most tourists would cherish. Thanks for showing us this interesting picture.

Roberto

tigra (2968) 2007-02-02 3:19

Hello Jose
Nice composition of tunisian souvenirs!
Thanks for very informative note, it could be useful for my work (I'm a journalist, and right now I'm writing an article about the souvenirs from different countries).
Katia

maltese (22909) 2007-02-02 5:20

Hello Jos�
Des couleurs superbes et une tr鑣 belle composition, un note tr鑣 instructive, que demander de plus?
Du tr鑣 beau travail
Amicalement
Herv�

jackart (6702) 2007-02-02 6:45

Hi Jose!

Very interesting observation. What a colors details and sharpness! What a expression!

Regards
Jacek

fanch (0) 2007-02-02 18:02

Hello Jos�

Cet artisanat Maghrebin , color� et ouvrag� , c'est un peu ta sp閏ialit� photographique , Il se pr鑤e merveilleusement � la nettet� de tes clich閟 que je continue de beaucoup aimer.

Amiti閟 ,

sothy81 (9646) 2007-02-02 18:35

Hi Jose, this is a very nice handicraft stuff. A great learning experience from Tunisia. Very well done in its colors, and sharpness. Well done. Sothy

adores (46979) 2007-02-02 19:00

Ol� Jos�!
Estas fotos s鉶 sempre imperd韛eis! Encontraste uma tenda engra鏰da com uma boa variedade de artesanato. A foto est� muito boa e colorida.Tirei l� algumas mas n鉶 ficaram t鉶 boas!
Anabela

everlasting (19978) 2007-02-03 3:07

Interesting souvenier shop and an interestign note. Fine details and colours shown here.

cuneyt-sb (6576) 2007-02-03 7:43

Hi Jose
Its not looks soo good in galary , but when u grow it to bigger size than u understand how nice and great shot u made.
Very nice colors and focus indeed.
TFS, Regards

guillaumejm (0) 2007-02-03 15:16

Hello jose,
You're right it's nice for the colours and documentation. Sharpness is very good too.
Best regards
JMarc

parbo (11092) 2007-02-03 20:50

Ol� Jos�,

Your photo includes nice composition of Tunisian souvenirs. Sort of souvenirs have clear and sharp view as every time with your precise works. More interesting part is also their stand for me. Sellers are just using raw ground for showing their products. It’s more useful with your informative notes. Congratulations. I wish you a very good week-end.

Friendly Regards,

Ertugrul

etiennejr (1022) 2007-02-04 0:18

Hi Jose,
Very nice and colorful market shot. Whenever I am in new countries, I just love the markets, small or big. The sharpness is nice, brings out the details of the items well.
Great shot,
TFS
Etienne

vagabondtravels (6511) 2007-02-05 19:04

Hey Jose

A colorful image of these handicrafts. Very sharp. Great note and a good te shot. Well done.
Ben

mesutilgim (0) 2007-02-06 17:17

Hello Jose,
A simple daily scene; but you have managed to make it to a great artwork. This is the main difference between to look and to see.
TFS
MESUT ILGIM

deblink (2548) 2007-02-06 17:36

It may be a tourist snapshot Jose but I really like it. I love seeing art and craft from other countries and these colourful items are superb. I would have purchased the smiling sun. The quality of your image is superb. Very nice.
Cheers,
Debbie

paura (25802) 2007-03-01 18:38

Jos�,
Interessante ponto de tomada aqui. Propiciou uma linda omposi玢o, repleta de formas e cores interessantes.

Abra鏾

paulo

oochappan (4880) 2007-03-02 13:02

happand to be in your random profile and looked inviting. When I see a shot I always ask myself if it would be big sized walled, would it be strong enough to catch my attention day by day or would it bore me already after a short time ... this is a bit the standard I use for myself and with your photo here I'm sure it would reside under the first positive standard, it would enjoy me to look at it daily for the colors and many details imagening the love and art craftmenship to make this.
thanks for sharing and your ever altruistic support you give !
Henk

vinicio (23423) 2007-05-14 1:48

Hi Jose, I like pottery and handworks in ceramics, and this image even if a little "touristic" is good to understand and watch how fine are the products of their tradition, well done, compliments.
Have a nice week
Ciao
Vinicio