DescriptionThis is a contemporary dress, with shoulder pads, using traditional Palestinian cross-stitch technique, colors and patterns. Starting in the 1970's, the embroidery patterns used for Palestinian embroidered dresses (thobe), expressed a national allegiance to Palestine, rather than to a particular village or town. The motifs and style utilized in this dress, and during this time period, continue to underscore a unified Palestinian style. The dresses of the post 1948 era no longer represent the regional identity of the wearer, but a Palestinian national identity in the face of cultural erasure and appropriation.