The Gulf region is poorly represented for a number of reasons including the rapidity of change that has taken place in the second half of the 20th century. This is a pity because the variety of costume and embroidery within the Islamic tradition, was quite extensive and varied. This ranged from the work of men who wove the ‘bisht’ or male shoulder mantle, to costumes made and embroidered by women of different towns or tribes. The ‘thob’ (a flimsy net overdress) used in the Eastern part of the Gulf and Arabia was tailored by professional embroideresses in Bahrain. Although the ‘thob’ was made in Kuwait with the placement of embroidery particular to that country, a Bahrain ‘thob’ was always considered particularly special. One of the primary examples for the comparative lack of examples is society in the Gulf was not a throwaway one and clothing was carefully mended and re-mended and passed down until it ended its life as a sometimes decorative pot holder. Ultimately, this has left very little for the collector to obtain. However, the clothing traditions from Syria, Palestine and Jordan, which differs from that of the Gulf is well represented in the Museum.