Seven Stages For Crafting The Holy Kaaba’s Kiswa By Skilled Saudi Artisans

A team of skilled young Saudis is responsible for crafting the Holy Kaaba's Kiswa, a process that involves seven distinct stages. This intricate task begins with refining, where purified water is prepared to specific standards for washing and dyeing silk. The entire process is a testament to their expertise in weaving beauty using silk, silver, and gold threads.

The second stage involves washing and dyeing the silk. This step removes the protective wax layer from the silk before dyeing it black for the external Kiswa and green for the inner Kiswa and the Prophet’s Chamber. After dyeing, the silk is dried using specialised dryers.

In the third stage, automated weaving takes place. Here, both patterned and plain silk fabrics are produced for the Kiswa and its inner lining. Silk threads transform from skeins into warp beams containing over 9,900 threads per meter. These are mounted on weaving machines to create patterned silk for the outer Kiswa and plain silk for printing Quranic verses.

The fourth stage focuses on printing Quranic verses onto plain silk fabric. This fabric is fixed onto a loom, where precise geometry is used in screen printing (silk screen) to print verses on various parts of the Kiswa, including its belt, panels beneath it, lantern-shaped motifs, "Samadiyyah" panels, and the curtain of the Kaaba’s door.

During assembly and stitching in the fifth stage, pieces of the Kiswa are connected and stitched together. This includes assembling the Kaaba’s door curtain. Gilded pieces like the belt and panels beneath it are affixed during this phase.

The sixth stage involves embroidery of gilded elements. Quranic verses and Islamic motifs are embroidered with silver threads, some plated with gold. Cotton threads pad these designs to highlight letters and patterns effectively.

Quality Control and Installation

Quality control marks the seventh stage. Every input and output undergoes thorough inspection to ensure they meet required standards before installation. The final step sees each side of the Kaaba covered individually; corners are stitched together at both corners and bottom before installing the door curtain.

Tomorrow marks an important event as 154 technicians will replace the Holy Kaaba's Kiswa in an annual ceremony following Hijri tradition. They will raise a new Kiswa while lowering an old one on Muharram's first day.

With inputs from SPA