The Orenburg Shawl along with Tula Samovar, Matrioshka, Khohloma painting, Gzhel, Palekh and Vologda lace, Dymkovo toys, Rostov finift (enamel), Ural malachite is one of Russia’s symbols. Down- hair knitting craft originated in Orenburg area about 250 years ago, in the XVIII century.
The Orenburg region of Russia is famous for its shawls, known as Orenburg shawls/scarves or wedding ring shawls, finely knit lace shawls which have been created in the region for over 300 years. In the English-speaking world they are often called "wedding ring shawls," because, although the shawls are quite large, a shawl knit in the traditional fashion can be pulled through a wedding ring because the knitting is so fine.
The shawls are made from a blend of silk and indigenous goat fiber, similar to cashmere or mohair. The goats are brushed each spring to collect the fiber. Each goat gives off about a pound of fiber. The fiber is then handspun using a supported spindle. It is then plied against a commercial silk thread. The silk helps hold the shape of the lace, preventing it from needing to be blocked as often as it would without the silk. Originally the shawls were made entirely of goat fiber, but this was changed. By plying with one silk single and one goat, the price of the shawls decreased, because the labor required to produce a shawl decreased. The silk also increases the strength of the shawl.
After the yarn has been spun and plied, the shawl is then knitted, before washing the yarn. The yarn and fiber is not washed until the shawl has been knitted and is ready for blocking and sale. The shawls are knitted into a variety of geometric designs. The shawls are made in many shapes; rectangular, square and triangular. The size varies from a 5ft by 5ft square shawl to a headscarf sized one. Color varies depending on the coloring of the goats. Some shawls contain more than one color.
The down hair of Orenburg goats is the thinnest in the world – 16-18 micromillimeter, and that of Angora goats (mohair) is 22-24 micromillimeter. That’s why products made of Orenburg down hair, shawls and kerchiefs - pautinkas, are especially soft and tender. Severe winters with a lot of snow and snow storms and blizzards along with particular qualities of feed, natural growth of the Urals mountain steppes, - these are the basic reasons of the thinness of the down hair of the Orenburg goats breed. At the same time this down hair is very durable, more durable than wool. Most surprising is the fact that Orenburg goat breed can be reared only in Orenburg Region. The efforts of the French in the XIX century to import Orenburg goat were not successful: goats need their thin down hair to keep warm and the warm climate of France was not favourable for it. Orenburg goats in France degenerated and turned into ordinary goats with rough thick down hair. In the XVIII – XIX centuries France imported tens of thousands of pounds of Orenburg goats down hair which was valued more than the Kashmirian one.
In the 20th century the wars and the Iron Curtain of the Soviet Era
cut short the epoch of the worldwide fame of the Orenburg’s
handicraft. However it did not mean the end to the down-knitting
handicraft in the region. One of the innovations introduced at that
time was the combined use of down wool of both Orenburg and
Volgograd goats. The down of Volgograd goats turned to be very good
for knitting white shawls, and the local knitters estimated the
fact. Another achievement was the foundation of Orenburg Downy
Shawls Plant.
Again, just like in the 19th century, Orenburg shawls were in the focus of attention, this time within the limits of the USSR. It was unanimously considered inapt to return from Orenburg without a downy shawl.
Western Europe is still buying a lot of Orenburg goats down hair.
There are several kinds of Orenburg shawls. Firstly, these are grey (seldom white) thick down hair shawls. It was them that gave start to Orenburg down-hair knitting. Secondly, there are also quite dense kerchiefs and pautinkas. They are used for every day wear and they give similar warmth as shawls. Such pautinkas are knitted in Orsk region. The third kind of Orenburg kerchiefs are very thin as “spider line” pautinkas and tippets. As a rule thin pautinkas have got fancy patterns and are used as decoration on special occasions.
The best thin pautinkas are knitted in the settlements of Zhioltoe and Shushma of Sarakhtash District. Such pautinka will be a fine decoration for any evening dress of whatever style. As a warp for pautinkas knitters use rayon silk thread and for shawls they use cotton thread. Each knitter spins threads of different thickness. In pautinkas there are usually two thirds of down hair and one third of rayon silk thread. Beside shawls and kerchiefs, there are also other products that are knitted today from Orenburg down hair: sleeveless jackets, poncho, downy and very warm sweaters.
A really good shawl is knitted from non-spun yarn: the knitter–woman will spin a strong down hair yarn and only then spins it on silk thread- warp. Such shawl or kerchief –“spider line” will not look downy from the very beginning. They start downing when they wear. And it will last for a long time. A good knitter can knit two kerchiefs – pautinkas (“spider lines”) of medium size or three tippets a month. It will take a month or more to knit a shawl of big size or a kerchief with pattern or inscription. Having in mind high cost of down hair and yarn it should be noted that an original hand-made Orenburg shawl or kerchief cannot be cheap. Each shawl or kerchief – pautinka is an original piece of art which needed much work and patience of down-hair knitters. Each knitter has her own secrets and patterns. At the heart of traditional pattern of Orenburg shawl there are ancient magic signs. Each shawl presents a picture of the Universe the way every knitter imagines it.
   | History of Orenburg goat down knitted shawls - History of Orenburg goat down knitted shawls |
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