a new sample made of local textile material (100 cotton) (misr spinning and weaving company, mehalla el kubra) is produced from a specially woven structure which possesses high porosity for use as a sound absorbing curtain. a double-layered curtain was designed for high efficiency, not only in sound absorption, but also light insulation. one layer was made of 100 cotton, while the other was made of cotton/polyester 35:65. the two layers are separated by an air space, which is varied to obtain a construction of optimum effectiveness. using the standing wave apparatus (bruel and kjaer type 4002), the sound absorption coefficient $alpha$ of such samples was measured at normal sound incidence. the effect of air space, behind and/or between the layers of curtain, on the absorption coefficient has been studied in order to achieve the best construction for a specific application. (author abstract) 9 refs