90 THE KIRGHIZ COSTUME. 



velvet, splendidly embroidered with silk, more especially the back 

 elevation." 



Such is the dwelling of a Kirghiz chief in the Steppe. 



The national garment of the Kirghiz is the khalat, a kind of 

 pelisse, very long and very full, with large sleeves, in silk or cash- 

 mere, and of the most dazzling colours ; but the poorer warriors sub- 



KlROHIZ AOUL OR VlLI.AE. 



stitute for this state dress a horse-skin jacket. Breeches fastened 

 below the hips by a girdle of wool or cashmere, high-heeled madder- 

 coloured boots, and a fox-skin cap, rising into a cone on the top, and 

 lined inside with crimson cloth, complete his costume. His weapons 

 are the spear, the gun, the axe, and the cutlass. The women wear a 

 long and copious robe, and a veil of numerous folds, surmounted by a 



