The word nyoka literally means "snake." It refers to the physical appearance of the long, rectangular beaded panels that are identified with Ndebele brides, but it does not seem to imply anything snakelike about the garments' wearers. Unlike Western bridal veils, these Ndebele creations were worn after the wedding on important occasions. There seems to have been quite a lot of variation on how they were worn: attached to a headpiece, draped from the shoulders as a cape, even worn down the front of the body.
Description:
Long, beaded rectanuglar panel of large white beads with mult-colored geometric motifs and the lower end finished with two small rectangular extensions.
Provenance:
Norman and Susan Priebatsch, collected Loskop Dam area, -- to 1977
Chaim and Renee Gross, New York, 1978 to 1983
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