Here is a beautifull old Chodor Turkoman embroidered purse which would have as likely been used to cary tea Leaves as it would have been used to carry money (tea is a very prized commodity among the Turkoman tribal people). The Chodor are a smaller Turkoman tribal group found in the upper north west corner of Turkmenistan. Chodor tribal weaveings and embroideries have been pirzed by the Centrail Asain textile collecting comunity for a long time. Chodor embroideries of this age and condition rarely come up for sale these days, this is a very collectable piece. The bag measures 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" and is in perfect condition. The base of the bag is made of a beautifull piece of old silk ikat, with classic Chodor squares connected by red silk stiching makeing a subtle checker pattern. The top one third of the bag is embroidered on a red background cloth which is backed (inside the bag) with a different piece of ikat fabric.The colors and patterns used are all classic Chodor and date this lovely piece to the 3rd. to 4th. quarter of the 19th. century. The bag is in near mint condition still retaining its origional tie cord with metal toped beaded tassels and is a very collectable museum piece of Centrail Asian Turkoman tribal embroidery.