Business

War shatters glassblowing craft in Afghanistan

AFP

Ghulam Sakhi is one of the last glassblowers of Herat, where the once-thriving industry has been shattered by decades of war, poverty and cheap imports. [JUSTINE GERARDY/AFPTV/AFP]

HERAT -- Hunched and shrivelled, Afghan glassblower Ghulam Sakhi deftly blows and twirls molten glass into delicate blue and green goblets and vases -- a craft passed down for generations but now at risk of dying out.

Sakhi is one of the last makers of Herati glassware in the eponymous city of Herat, where the once-thriving industry has been shattered by decades of war, poverty, and cheap imports.

The brick and corrugated iron workshop where Sakhi toils operates only a few days a month, owing to the lack of demand for the distinctive coloured glassware that is more expensive than Chinese-made products.

"People don't value art," argued Sakhi, who is in his mid-40s but looks much older. He began working when he was seven with his father, who taught him the craft.

Sultan Ahmad Hamidi, 78, sells Herati glassware at his handicrafts shop in Herat Province August 2. [HOSHANG HASHIMI/AFP]

Sultan Ahmad Hamidi, 78, sells Herati glassware at his handicrafts shop in Herat Province August 2. [HOSHANG HASHIMI/AFP]

Ghulam Sakhi crafts a glass object at his traditional workshop in Herat Province August 2. Sakhi is one of the last makers of glassware in Herat city, where the once-thriving industry has been shattered by decades of war, poverty, and cheap imports. [HOSHANG HASHIMI / AFP]

Ghulam Sakhi crafts a glass object at his traditional workshop in Herat Province August 2. Sakhi is one of the last makers of glassware in Herat city, where the once-thriving industry has been shattered by decades of war, poverty, and cheap imports. [HOSHANG HASHIMI / AFP]

Glassblower Ghulam Sakhi is shown August 2 as he deftly blows and twirls molten glass into delicate blue and green goblets and vases -- a craft passed down for generations in Herat but now at risk of dying out. [HOSHANG HASHIMI/AFP]

Glassblower Ghulam Sakhi is shown August 2 as he deftly blows and twirls molten glass into delicate blue and green goblets and vases -- a craft passed down for generations in Herat but now at risk of dying out. [HOSHANG HASHIMI/AFP]

Ghulam Sakhi, mid-40s, with his son Habibullah, 18, crafts a glass object at his traditional workshop in Herat Province August 2. [HOSHANG HASHIMI/AFP]

Ghulam Sakhi, mid-40s, with his son Habibullah, 18, crafts a glass object at his traditional workshop in Herat Province August 2. [HOSHANG HASHIMI/AFP]

Sakhi sits on a low stool next to a wood-fired clay oven, occasionally wiping away sweat as the temperature inside the workshop soars above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).

His eldest son, Habibullah, works alongside him, scraping shards of glass -- mixed with copper or iron powder to create a blue or green tint -- into a bubbling pot of molten liquid inside the furnace.

Sakhi sticks an iron blowpipe into the fiery mixture, gently spinning it like a honey twirler. After extracting the rod, he swings, blows and rolls the molten glass into shape before firing it in a kiln.

The tools and techniques used by Sakhi have barely changed in generations, although instead of making glass from quartz, glassblowers now recycle bottles and broken windows, which are "easier to find".

"It's not going to last another generation," said Sakhi, whose family have been making Herati glass for "200 or 300 years".

'Already finished'

Decades of war have driven away foreign tourists who used to flock to Herat, a city steeped in history as a trading hub on the ancient Silk Road and the 15th century capital of the Timurid empire.

Most Afghans prefer cheaper Chinese-made imports over hand-made glassware that breaks easily, said Sakhi.

"They think when they buy imports from China, they are going to be better quality," he explained.

The only hints of modernity in the smoky workshop are Sakhi's Nokia mobile phone lying next to him and an electric fan whirring furiously in the searing heat.

Sultan Ahmad Hamidi, the white-bearded owner of the workshop, who spends his days lolling on a sofa in his store selling Herati glassware, trinkets and handicrafts, despairs for the future of his business.

"Thirty to 40 years ago people were lining up to buy glass here -- as many as 100 tourists a day," said the 78-year-old Hamidi.

His store, which is across a busy street from the city's main mosque, is crammed with Herati glass goblets, vases and bowls that are gathering dust.

With prices starting at about $6 (452.4 AFN), it takes a month to sell 100 pieces, he complained.

As the craft declines, survival becomes a growing challenge for Sakhi and his family.

Habibullah supplements their meagre income from glassblowing by ferrying passengers around the city in a three-wheeled motorbike taxi.

But without government support or tourism, Sakhi fears he could be the last of Herat's glassblowers.

"I'm very sad," he said. "If it [the business] stays like this, it's already finished."

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Decades of war have prevented those tourists who used to coming to Herat city. The city was historically regarded as the center of the ancient Silk Road and was the capital of the Timurid Empire in the 15th century. Sadly, we have lost many benefits of the country during decades of wars. Who benefited from the war? The benefit of the defeat of the Soviet Union went to Pakistan and the United States, and the benefit of the defeat of NATO also went to Pakistan, China, and Russia, but what happened to us? We were killed, we became orphans and widows, and our homeland was destroyed.

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