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Many accounts we have of Arabic Dance from the 1860's
and 1870's describe the woman's solo dance. Sometimes the
dance involved mime and other skills such as balancing
things on the head. Things like cups of liquid, or even
swords.Dancing with a sword is believed to date back
centuries. There are various theories as to why it
evolved - nobody really knows. One theory is that slaves
danced with a sword on their head to show defiance. I
would argue that it is a pretty lenient and trusting
master that would allow his slave to have a sword!
Another theory is that balancing on the head showed how
well crafted the sword was for potential customers - a
sort of advert. Or maybe (and this is the theory that I
am inclined towards) it was just good Ghawazee
entertainment - an attempt to be more spectacular and
thus earn more money. |
Certainly it is a very powerful and impressive dance (but then, it's hard not to look powerful and impressive when you're waving weapons about). This is not a dance for the faint-hearted and should be done with supreme confidence to carry it off. We also have historical evidence in pictures of sword dancers: one, a lithograph, "Sword dance in Jericho" done around 1870 and a beautiful oil painting by the artist and traveller Jean-Leon Gerome called "An almeh performing the sword dance" which was painted again in about 1870. This second painting adorns the front cover of Wendy Buonaventura's book "Serpent of the Nile" (Saqi Books, 1989). |
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Contributor: Candida Colgrave-Bell
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