The Tuareg bag is a traditional Moroccan leather bag with a flap decorated with tribal embroidery made of cactus silk. Handcrafted from the goat leather by the Nomads of the Sahara - Berber tribes.
In Berber-speaking Tuareg society women decorate the leather saddlebags used to carry salt during migrations across the desert. They work the goatskin with impressed, stitched, or excised motifs, and attach tassels and fringe that shake with the camel’s movement for added visual impact. The colorful palette of black, green, reddish brown, and white comes from dyes made with indigo, pomegranate, sorghum, and minerals. The lush embroidery is then applied by women's hands.
Tightly woven colorful leather strips make up an intricate geometric tribal Moroccan pattern on the front, leading to an excess of fringe along the bottom. Flat tote body has a foldover design with a small toggle closure and large patch pocket on the front.
Made by Berber tribes
"Berbers are the indigenous ethnic group of North Africa. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. The name Berber appeared for the first time after the end of the Roman Empire. Many Berbers call themselves some variant of the word imazighen (singular: Amazigh), possibly meaning “free people” or “free and noble men”."
Grouped in independent federations, the Tuareg People number approximately 1.5 million and live in southern Morocco, southern Algeria, southwestern Libya, Mali and Niger. This nomadic Sahara tribe once controlled all the caravan routes across the Sahara. They are a semi-nomadic and evolved from the North African Berbers.
Greatly admired for the artistry of their silversmithing and leather work, they count their wealth in camels.The Tuareg bag is an excellent example of the finesse of their leather work. Strips of leather are woven or sewn together and hand-painted. Fringe is an important part of their aesthetic because they love the way it sways as they ride their camels across the desert and they also believe it wards off the evil eye.
Moroccan Corridor® Collection
Inspired by the Tuareg bags, the Rebel Collection by Moroccan Corridor® is a collection of high quality leather bags, all handmade, dyed in the 'typical' colors of the nomads and features elaborate tooling, fringe and braiding. The long fringes in different sizes are just as typical, important and beautiful.
This bags are just incredible. You may wear this bag as a crossbody/messenger bag. But you may also have a grouping of these bags on the wall creating an incredible tribal display. They are amazing!
