Traditional women's clothes in the Caucasus

These portraits of women wearing beautiful traditional clothes were copied from the website of the Peter the Great Museum of Anthropology and Ethnography of the Russian Academy of Sciences—better known as the Kunstkamera. (All images are © the Museum.)

The black-and-white photographs (as opposed to the sepia ones) are part of the Museum's online "Women's Assembly of the Caucasus" exhibition, whose introduction goes:

You are about to behold the women of the Caucasus as they were seen by the photographers of the 19th and 20th centuries. On display is the work both of the recognized Russian maestros of photography—F.Orden, D. Yermakov, N. Nikitin and of the ethnographers who took the pictures for the purposes of scientific research. Here, the ethnic variety of the Caucasus is mirrored by pictures of the Abazin, Abkhaz, Avartsy, Aguly, Azerbaijani, Armenians, Balkartsy, Bezhtin, Greeks, Georgians, Dargin, Didoitsy, Jews, Ingush, Nogai, Laktsy, Ossetians, Rutultsy, Udin, Chechens.

Abazin

"Young Abazin woman."

(Abkhazia, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

"Abazin woman."

(Abkhazia, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

Abkhaz

"Abkhaz girl."

(1881)

Photographer: Barnakov

"Prosperous women with servant."

(Abkhazia, mid to late XIXth century)

"Women in traditional costumes."

(Sukhum, Abkhazia, mid to late XIXth century)

Photographer: Dimitri Ermakov

"Group of women with girls."

(Abkhazia, mid to late XIXth century; Photographer: D.A. Nikitin)

Adyghe (Circassians)

"Parting with warriors."

(Krasnodar, Russia, 1908; Photographer: S.A. Shavlovsky)

Archi

"Archinian woman in traditional headdres."

(Daghestan, 1883)

Armenian

"Armenian women in short jackets and straight skirts."

(1881)

Photographer: D.N. Yermakov

"Women from Akhaltsikhe dressed in fine clothes, wearing traditional western Armenian aprons (gognots)

and head-dresses."(Akhaltsikhe, Georgia, 1881; Photographer: D.A. Nikitin)

"Armenian woman in fine dress."

(Shemakha, 1883)

"Armenian woman from Shemakha in fine dress."

(Shemakha, 1883)

"Armenian woman from Shemakha."

(Shemakha, 1883)

"Agèd woman with string of beads."

(1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

"Women in traditional clothes spinning thread."

(1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

"A young woman."

(Akhaltsikhe, Georgia, 1881; Photographer: D.A. Nikitin)

"Armenian women in full dresses."

(Akhaltsikhe, Georgia, 1881)

Photographer: D.A. Nikitin

"Armenian woman from Akhaltsikh in traditional dress."

(Akhaltsikhe, Georgia, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

"Armenian woman from Shemakha."

(Shemakha, Azerbaijan, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

Avar

"Avar woman wearing two kerchiefs and a mantle."

(Khindrakh, Daghestan, 1883)

"Avar woman wearing two kerchiefs and a dressing-gown."

(Daghestan, 1883)

Azerbaijani

"Azerbaijani women from Baku in fine dresses."

(Baku, Azerbaijan, 1881)

Photographer: Luarsabov

"Azerbaijani woman from Baku."

(Baku, Azerbaijan, 1883)

"Azerbaijani woman from Baku."

(Baku, Azerbaijan, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

Balkar

"The Sunshevy family in traditional clothes. Girls wearing traditional head-dresses."

(Tubenel, Balkaria, early XXth century)

Photographer: N.A. Bush

"The Sunshev family in national garments." (Bezengi, Kabardino-Balkaria, 1913)

Budukh

"Girls from Budug settlement."

(the village of Budukh near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

"Women from Budug settlement."

(the village of Budukh near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

Chechen

"Young woman."

(1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

"Portrait of woman in traditional costume."

(Pankisi Gorge, Georgia, mid to late XIXth century)

Photographer: D.A. Nikitin

Dargin

"Girl in traditional festive costume."

(Murza-bek, Neftekumisky, near Stavropol, Russia, 1980s)

Photographer: A.V. Kurbanov

Georgian

"Georgian woman, the daughter of priest, wearing the traditional head-dress (Georgian: tavsakravi)."

(Georgia, 1881)

Photographer: D.A. Nikitin

"Georgian woman with newborn."

(Georgia, 1881; Photographer: D.A. Nikitin)

"Women in casual clothes and traditional Georgian head-dresses (Georgian: tavsakravi)."

(Georgia, 1881)

"Woman from Guria."

(Guria, Georgia, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

"Young woman in luxuriant cloths."

(Georgia, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

"Georgian [Ingilo] women from Kah village in festive clothes."

(near Zakatala, Azerbaijan, 1883)

"Portrait of young woman."

(mid to late XIXth century)

"Khevsur woman."

(Georgia, 1881)

Photographer: D.A. Nikitin

"Woman in traditional dress."

(Georgia, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

"Mingrelian woman with traditional musical instrument."

(Georgia, 1897)

Photographer: F. Orden

An undated portrait of a Svan woman, copied from Izolda Melikishvili & Luarsab Togonidze's beautiful book, Traditional Georgian Attire (Tbilisi: Georgian National Museum & the 'Samoseli Pirveli' clothes shop, ?2014)

An undated portrait of a two Ingilo women, copied from Izolda Melikishvili & Luarsab Togonidze's beautiful book (op. cit.)

An undated portrait of a three Tush women, copied from Izolda Melikishvili & Luarsab Togonidze's beautiful book (op. cit.)

Another undated portrait of three Tush women, copied from Izolda Melikishvili & Luarsab Togonidze's beautiful book (op. cit.)

An undated photograph of two Tush women leading their children on horseback, copied from Izolda Melikishvili & Luarsab Togonidze's beautiful book (op. cit.)

Pontic Greek

"Greek woman from Trebizond, in fine dress with embracings [sic.] and fur."

(Turkey, 1881)

Photographer: D.N. Yermakov

Ingush

"Ingush woman in traditional costume."

(Ingushetia, 1881)

Photographer: D.A. Nikitin

"Ingush woman in fine traditional dress."

(Ingushetia, 1883)

"Jewish"

"Jewish woman."

(Akhaltsikhe, Georgia, 1881)

Photographer: D.A. Nikitin

Kabard (Circassians)

"Man with girls." (Kabardino-Balkaria, mid to late XIXth century; Photographer: D.A. Nikitin)

"Young woman in traditional costume."

(Kabardino-Balkaria, mid to late XIXth century)

"The Batashevs from Malaya Kabarda."

(Kabardino-Balkaria, c.1890)

Photographer: F. Orden

Karachay (-Circassians)

"Traditional dance." (Karachay-Cherkassia, Russia, c.1890; Photographer: F. Orden)

"Group of woman in national garments." (Karachay-Cherkassia, Russia, c.1890; Photographer: F. Orden)

Khinalug

"Group of residents of Khinalug settlement."

(the village of Khinalug near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

"Girls from Khinalug settlement."

(the village of Khinalug near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

Kryz

"Women from Kryz settlements."

(the Kryz villages near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

"Youngsters from Kryz settlements."

(the Kryz villages near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

"Girls and old woman from the village of Djeg."

(the village of Djeg near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

Kumyk

"Woman in traditional costume."

(the village of Malye Kazanische near Buynaksk, Daghestan, c.1880)

Lak

"Wife of the khan in Kazikumukh."

(Daghestan, 1883)

"Lak girl from the village of Kuli."

(Daghestan, 1883)

"Participant of district parade of the amateur art activists."

(the village of Kurla, Laksk district, Daghestan, 1950)

"Reginat-bike, sister of the Shamkhal of Tarku, widow of Ibrahim-khan Mekhtulinskiy."

(the town of Buynaksk, Daghestan, c.1880)

"Portrait of girl in traditional costume."

(Daghestan, c.1880)

Lezgin

"Women from the village of Leze."

(near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

"Girls from the village of Leze."

(near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

"Woman from the village of Gil."

(near Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1880)

Photographer: Dimitri Yermakov

Nogai

"Nogai women."

(Daghestan, 1881)

Photographer: D.A. Nikitin

Ossetian

"Ossetian girl wearing a kerchief."

(North Ossetia, 1883)

Photographer: Voyutsky

"Ossetian girl from the village of Elkhotovo near Vladikavkaz."

(North Ossetia, 1883)

"The Dudarov sisters. Dressed in traditional Ossetian cloths."

(North Ossetia, 1881)

Photographer D.A. Nikitin

"Ossetian woman with child."

(North Ossetia, 1883)

"Ossetian woman in traditional dress."

(North Ossetia, 1883)

"Ossetian girl Zhukaeva in traditional dress."

(North Ossetia, 1883)

"Peasant wet-nurse in city cloth[e]s with child."

(North Ossetia, 1883)

"Group portrait of Ossetians."

(Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia-Alania, mid to late XIXth century)

Rutul

"Women."

(the village of Shinaz, Rutulsky district, Daghestan, 1952)

Tat (Mountain Jews)

"The Jews in workaday clothes."

(the village of Vartashen, Azerbaijan, 1883)

"The Jews from Kuba in workaday clothes."

(the town of Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1883)

"Jewish woman from Kuba."

(the town of Kuba, Azerbaijan, 1883)

Udi

"Woman sitting in front of house in traditional dress and head-dress which covers half her face."

(Vartashen, Armenia, 1883)