Dress: 151.5 x 144cm (59 5/8 x 56 11/16in.) Wrap: 181 x 82.5cm (71 1/4 x 32 1/2in.)
Type:
Textile and Fiber Arts
Geography:
Benin City, Nigeria
Date:
1988
Label Text:
The Benin court has a long history of assimilating luxury trade goods from neighboring and distant cultures. The embroidered and sequined Benin-style woman's dress and stole are sewn in an Indian silk sari cloth, known locally as "George," which is considered prestigious and expensive.
Description:
Benin-style women's "George" floor length dress with matching stole; white and purple with embroidery and sequins.
Provenance:
Gift made for Dr. Flora Kaplan by Queen Ohan Akenzua, 1988 to 2004
Exhibition History:
TxtStyles: Fashioning Identity, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., June 11-December 7, 2008
Published References:
Kreamer, Christine Mullen. 2008. TxtStyles/Fashioning Identity: 06.11.08-12.28.08. Exhibition booklet. Washington, D.C.: National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, pp. 10-11.
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