Artwork Details
Culture
Creation Date
Materials
Object Types
Dimensions
34-3/4 x 46-1/2 in. (with fur) .
Accession Number
Credit Line
Deaccessioned Textiles Fund
Copyright
Collection
Color Palette
Provenance
African art dealer, Lomé, Togo by 1981. Private Collection, New York, in 1981; (Young Robertson Gallery, New York); purchased by the Indianapolis Museum of Art in 2012.
Gallery Labels
In the early 1900s, the Bamileke king began to encourage the local production of indigo resist-dyed textiles that until then had been imported. Such cloths were worn by the king, the royal family, and other high-ranking individuals.
The patterns on this example were created using a stitch resist-dye technique. The cloth was tightly stitched with raffia in the areas intended to resist the dye. When dipped in a vat of indigo dye, the stitched areas resisted the dye and remained white while unstitched areas absorbed the blue color. The repeated triangle motif refers to the leopard, a symbol of royal power.
Exhibition History
Exhibition Name
Venue
Dates
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