Text: excerpts from "Le henné, art des femmes de Mauritanie", Aline Tauzin, Ibis Presse
Henna is one of the trees that grow in paradise — so it is regarded throughout the Muslim world. In Mauritania, it is added that it first grew for the daughter of the Prophet, and that she was the first woman to make of its red dye an adornment.
In Mauritania — as far as the Moorish ethnic group is concerned — henna is cultivated in the palm groves, where it enjoys the shade of the trees and daily irrigation. It may be planted near the well, so as to catch the slightest drop of water escaping from the bucket. Planting is men's business, harvesting women's. Contrary to what seems to be done elsewhere, the seed is not sown: the plant is propagated by layering, laying a branch in a circle in a wide, shallow hole. Henna seeds here have the reputation of rotting in the ground.
Henna is harvested at any time, once it has reached maturity. It is not cut; the leaves are stripped by sliding a crooked index finger — wrapped in a cloth to protect it from any gash — along the branch. It is then dried, sheltered from the wind, in the shade of a dwelling. If it remained in the sun, it would lose all its power. From the branches of the tree are made highly prized toothpicks, which give fresh breath.
The henna plantation is, in Mauritania, a space charged with intense poetry. First of all, the plant's ability to withstand drought, however severe, and to grow green again at the first rain, takes on a particular meaning when set against the surrounding desert. It is also said that the scent it gives off — described by the prized term "cold" — is most agreeable. Finally, the palm grove is a public space, open to all, where amorous encounters can seem the work of chance and unfold without incurring disgrace. The henna harvest is a privileged occasion for this, and poetry often echoes it.
Henna as adornment
The most recent and most elaborate designs are drawn with the aid of sticking plaster and are known by the generic term el-xatt, "the lines". The resist technique currently used makes great use of sticking plaster and, in this, appears to be unique in the world. It arose at a time when this commodity was still rare in Mauritania, and the exact circumstances of its appearance are unknown. Back then, only the hospitals possessed those precious rolls, and they consented to part with them only reluctantly, despite the stratagems deployed by the women to obtain them!
Each roll is first cut into thin strips, and it is in this form that it is found on market stalls, alongside the other necessary ingredients, the perfumes and the beads. Then the strip is divided into tiny segments, directly on the skin, with a razor blade, during the henna-application session. The designs are drawn without the help of any support or guide, and yet the symmetry is perfect, from one hand or one foot to the other. Once this work is finished — it takes several hours — the henna is spread on, the plaster acting as a resist, as rags or euphorbia milk once did.