Chokha (Georgian Men's Coat)
The chokha is the traditional men's coat of the Caucasus, a long woollen garment with a fitted waist, a flared skirt and, most distinctively, rows of small cartridge cases - the gazyr - sewn diagonally across the chest. The gazyr began as real ammunition holders, with silver, wood or bone caps, and survived as ornament long after firearms made them obsolete, so the decorated chest became the emblem of Caucasian dress. In Georgia the chokha has been worn since at least the seventeenth century, with regional cuts: the Khevsur highland variant is richly embroidered in wool, while the plain dark c