A four-paneled bed cover made of narrow strips of handwoven cotton that has been colored in an elegant striped design with indigo dyes. The worn areas have been carefully repaired with patches of fabrics of various sorts.

Bedding Cover (futonji)

Maker Japanese Artist

DateMeiji period (1868-1912)

(not assigned)Japan

MediumHandwoven cotton, thread

Dimensions5 ft. 8 3/4 in. x 50 in. (174.6 x 127 cm)

ClassificationsTextiles

Credit LineGift of Norma Canelas Roth and William D. Roth

Object number2010.95.8

Collections

ASIAN

Visual DescriptionA four-paneled bed cover made of narrow strips of handwoven cotton that has been colored in an elegant striped design with indigo dyes. The worn areas have been carefully repaired with patches of fabrics of various sorts.

Discover More

Bed cover made from 4 strips of handwoven cotton that was hand printed (katazome) in indigo in a large swirling floral pattern.

Bed Cover (futonji)

Japanese Artist

Meiji period (1868-1912)

White, blue dominant striped pattern; strip woven cloth hand sewn at selvedges; indigo dyed yarns, and synthetic dyes; red, yellow; machine stitching. Scrolling design on one border with muslin cloth backing.

Woman's Wrapper

Senufo Artist

20th century

Navy and gray stripe with overshot color bands, 22 strip-woven panels hand-sewn together. Warp and weft threads dyes in 10 colors.

Man's Cloth (adanudo)

Ewe Artist

20th century

A voluminous garment constructed from layered, mismatched textiles like red plaid, black velvet, and colorful patterned fabrics. The head is obscured by wrapped cloths, and a textured, woven chest piece decorated with small triangular pendants hangs down the front.

Ancestor Spirit Masquerade Costume (egungun)

Yoruba Artist

20th century

The Fengu blankets are similiar to those of the Xhosa. This one has the fur trim which the Fengu prefer as well as the older mother-of-pearl buttons. There is also the fine black wool embroidery work and the delicate use of the glass bead-work. The blanket would have been worn partially folded over by about one third the width. The origin is Mazizini.

Man's Blanket (Ingubo)

Zulu Artist

1850-1950

Handspun cotton, handwoven into strips, sewn on selvedges, resist dyed with indigo dye; allover pattern of small white triangles

Scarf

Aboubakar Fofana

20th century

A rectangular textile featuring a grid of nine squares. The squares alternate between diamond shapes in red and blue on white backgrounds, and checkerboard patterns in yellow, orange, and blue on black backgrounds. Horizontal striped bands and black and white checkerboard bands and white fringe border the top and bottom.

Woman's Cloth

Maryam Kienta

1981

A cape made with ten layers of beadwork. The solid colored bead work would have been contributed by the bride's older female relatives while the colorful, more contemporary work would have been the work of her younger relatives (siblings and cousins). The double strand of beads is an indication that the bride was a virgin at the time of the marriage (she had not had a child).

Ngwame Wedding Day Cape (Izikoti)

Zulu Artist

1950-1960

A long sleeve caftan/dress sewn from strips of wax print fabric likely Chinese imports and Woodin (a company that locally produces fabric in Ghana). The bodice of the caftan features horizontal strips, whereas the skirt of the dress relies on vertical strips. Each strip is formed from a mixture of long strips of fabric, interspersed with small squares of fabric. The caftan includes a designer label, which states: “Cloth on cloth designs by Tei Huagie, made in Ghana”.

"Cloth on Cloth" Caftan

Tei Mensah Huagie

2000

Disc with Cloud Pattern

Chinese Artist

Eastern Zhou dynasty (770-256 BCE)

Disc

Chinese Artist

Neolithic Period or later

Skirt with tie-dyed circles. Handwoven palm fiber fabric with knotted decoration on hem. Dye is probably tukula (camwood).

Man's Skirt

Kuba Artist

20th century