The width of this cloth panel identifes it as women’s weave created on a broad vertical frame loom. Two strips of women’s weave are generally sewn together to make a woman’s wrap-around costume that consists of a wrapper for the top and one for the bottom, or it can be used for a tailored outfit. The town of Akwete is a center for professional full time weavers using imported cotton thread, as in these wrappers that are intended for daily wear. Cloth was also made for export to neighboring peoples both in Nigeria’s delta region and to the Yoruba region to the west.
Description:
Single panel woman’s hand-woven cotton wrapper with black and red narrow stripes bordered by wide red stripes with openwork.
Provenance:
Joanne Eicher, St. Paul, 1964-1966 to 2012
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