Míowany

Míowany are important to many areas of Kían culture. They are used in prayers, celebrations, coming of age rites and funerals as well as other significant events.
Different colours represent different things. Blue is the most common colour and is usually given as a gift on the twentieth birthday as a representation of coming of age. It is often embroidered with prayers of protection and good luck.
Green and brown are for generic purposes, used in prayers for anything from good health to a plentiful harvest.
Orange and red are typically used at funerals and to signify mourning, death and the passage to the afterlife in the sun.
Yellow is a much rarer colour due to difficulties in keeping it bright and clean. It is used at funerals along side red and orange but is mostly used to signify the four elements and the sun, commonly used by elemental magic users to pray to the gods for stronger spells.
Purple and white are the rarest colours. Purple is only used by the nobility as it is one of the most expensive colours to buy. It doesn't have a specific meaning other than signifying that the owner has a lot of wealth. A purple owany may be given to nobles on their twentieth birthday instead of a blue one. White is only found in temples and other holy places. It is forbidden for any individual who is not a priest or priestess to own a white owany. White míowany are typically found tied outside of entrances to holy places with prayers of guidance and protection embroidered on.
Black míowany are seen as cursed, used commonly by the Cult of Tarvik and others with evil intent.

Manufacturing process

Large sheets of fine linen are woven on the loom. The sheets are then dyed bright colours and are then cut to size and the edges are sewn to prevent the fabric from becoming frayed. The blank owany are then bought individually and prayers are embroidered along the edges in Gaervar runes.

Significance

In Kíathandí, owning a blue (or sometimes purple) owany signifies that one has come of age and is now an adult. Míowany are used to pray to the gods.

Item type

Religious / Ritualistic

Related ethnicities

• Kían

Rarity

Common in Kíathandí but rare to find anywhere else.

Dimensions

Roughly 1 x 0.3 m when flat but can be bigger or smaller

Raw materials & Components

Linen, various dyes, black or off-white thread.

Tools

Loom, needle, scissors