The Eternal Art of Diasidi

The Diasidi and the Kanoures gave life to the CalligrapheNia Strosidia ofPalaiochori, in Chalkidiki, Greece.“diasídi” is a set of distinct yet inseparably connected processes that interactwith one another, transforming the thread — the warp — into an intricateprocedure that forms the very foundation of weaving.The most important process in the art of weaving is the warping (to diasídi). Throughwarping, the simple cotton thread or rag yarn — the warp — becomes the veryfoundation of weaving.Setting up the warp required both knowledge and devotion. For that reason, only aspecific number of women were present during the process. The master weaver, whoknew the entire craft, had to remain fully focused on her work, assisted only by a fewwomen of the household — the weavers. It was hard labor that had to be finishedbefore the scorching sun rose high.In an open space that had been carefully cleaned the day before, early in the morning,eleven iron rods, about 15 cm long, were set into the ground, spaced roughly 20 cmapart — about a handspan. Onto these rods were placed reeds with the warp threadswound around them. To make the reeds turn easily, each rod base was fitted with asmall tin cap.In front of the reeds, at a perpendicular distance of about 2.5 to 3 meters, two woodenposts were driven into the ground — the crossing posts (stavrósi). The crossingdetermined the width of the warp, that is, the width of the woven textile to come, aswell as the total length of the warp.Along the same line as the crossing posts, and at a distance of about ten meters (tenstrides), the first post was driven to mark the beginning of the length, and in a zigzagpattern, more posts were added depending on how many warps were to be prepared.The last post was called the “tail” (ourá).This zigzag setup kept the warp threads properly stretched and tense — a decisivephase. Along with thread tying (paramátisma), it served as a kind of “examination”to see whether the warp had succeeded or had to be redone.Every household prepared for the dowries of its daughters. The mother decided whatto include in the dowry and how much money was needed to weave it. After the1950s — when rugs were first introduced to the village — she knew whether shewould weave kilims for the beds, bands for the walls, and how many rugs, runners,and mats would be made. She had already chosen the patterns her daughter wouldtake to her new home once she married.The first step was to count the warp threads for the chosen pattern, to determine thewidth of the warp.In the CalligrapheNia strosidia of Palaiochori, the whole process is an endless act ofcounting. If the warp threads were too few, the pattern would not form correctly, andwhen joined with the adjacent piece, harmony would be lost. If there were too many, it was not a problem — the excess threads could be gathered at the edge of the warpwithout disturbing the weaving.A two-panel rug required about six meters of warp; a three-panel one, about ninemeters; and a four-panel piece, around twenty-four meters. The warp thread thatthe mother purchased had to yield precisely those final measurements.