peshtemal
{{Short description|Traditional towel used in baths in Persia}}
{{more citations needed|date=January 2021}}
A peshtemal (also spelled peshtamal, pestamal, pestmal, or pestema ; from Persian{{Cite web|url=https://nisanyansozluk.com/?k=pe%C5%9Ftamal|title=peştamal|website=Nişanyan Sözlük}}~ Fa puştmāl {{lang|fa|پشتمال}} back towel § Fa puşt {{lang|fa|پشت}} back + Fa māl {{lang|fa|مال}} cleaning) is a traditional towel used in baths. A staple of Persia, with a strong influence on Ottoman culture, dating back hundreds of years, the pestemal was originally designed to help individual bathers maintain their privacy. In addition to being highly absorbent, pestemals dry faster than thicker towels.
Traditionally, Persian has a red color with simple designs or shapes with black or white lines, but other colors and patterns are also common.
It is also used to indicate which region people are from. There are many kinds of peshtemal, with different styles and colors in different areas of Turkey and Iran.
The peshtemal absorbs water as fast as a terrycloth towel, dries more quickly, takes up less space, is easy to carry and is therefore used as an alternative in bathrooms, pools, spas, beaches, sports facilities, and for baby care.{{Citation needed|reason=Requires source to confirm absorption property claims|date=December 2021}}
The peshtemal fabric is made of 100% cotton produced on manually operated looms in modern Turkey, historically in Antioch.