How silk spawned one of the greatest civilisations

I have long dreamed of Iran. For a decade or so it has been the holiday of my unfulfilled dreams. Ever since Covid-19 has struck the world, and confined us to our itsy-bitsy apartments, I find myself especially dreaming of the Abbasi Mosque of Isfahan, the Golestan palace of Tehran, the ruins of Persepolis in Shiraz and perhaps even skiing in the Zagros.
It’s also among the very few countries in the world that still requires a dress code from its tourists. Female travellers are required to wear a headscarf, a ‘roosari’ in Farsi, as soon as they exit a plane. I’ve long held an animus against the hijab, but among the things that made me open my mind was the fabulous book by Dutch scholar Mineke Schipper ‘Naked and Covered: A History of Dressing and Undressing Around the World’, a treatise that studies how different cultures around the world interpret clothing and freedom of dress.

Goodbye stereotypes and hello hijab, you’ll be seeing me soon. Friends who have been to Iran swear Iranian women are incredibly stylish, and especially enjoy making a statement with their clothing choices.