Bed cover
Category
Textiles
Date
1950 - 1980
Materials
Grass Dye
Measurements
499 x 5325 mm
Order this imageCollection
575 Wandsworth Road, London
NT 1512655
Summary
This long textile runner is known as a Kuba cloth. It is handwoven using raffia palm leaves. The raffia strands are dyed in a variety of earth tones using vegetable dyes. This runner is an example of a flatwoven Kuba cloth with appliqué decoration. Kuba cloth is unique to the Kuba people, who were part of the Kuba Kingdom, which flourished between the Kasai and Sankuru rivers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from the 17th to 19th centuries. Historically, the Kuba people have used Kuba cloths as skirts, wrappers, sleeping mats and even currency.
Provenance
Bequeathed to the National Trust by Khadambi Asalache upon his death in 2006; acquired fully in November 2010.