Iham

Turquoise Mountain and the ALIPH Foundation have teamed up to train four of our apprentices in product development. Led by master artisans and our own in-house design team, the apprentices have developed their own product collections, which are on display in our showroom and here on our webstore. With a focus on the traditional crafts of wood carving, wood-mosaic, carpentry, and mother of pearl inlay; the apprentices experienced the full design, production and sales cycle. All four collections celebrate craftsmanship and the region’s cultural heritage. Make sure to ask about these on your next visit and support our apprentices’ emerging craft skills by placing a product order.

Iham focuses on the craft of wood-mosaic which has a long history in the Levant, and it is of particular significance to artisans in Damascus. It is often created using a number of different woods, such as walnut, olive, eucalyptus, cherry, lemon, and rose woods. Mother-of-pearl can also be used. The woods are cut into strips and fitted together to create a design, forming long trunks stored by artisans for future pieces. The artisan will select the trunk to use and slice it, and this slice will then be inlaid into wood to create a geometric design. Detailed and intricate wood-mosaic has now all but disappeared as artisans produce less complex designs. In Jordan, a small community of wood-mosaic artisans are practicing and preserving the craft by passing their knowledge to a new generation of apprentices.