cloth
- Museum number
- Af1966,01.24
- Description
-
Cloth (aso oke), formed of seven narrow strips about 4 inches wide of hand-spun and hand-woven cotton, which have been sewn together along the selvedges by machine. The strips are of two patterns that have been arranged alternately across the cloth. Four have warp threads of dark indigo, through which single lines of a lighter indigo have been run at regular intervals. The other three have a purely white ground thread in both warp and weft; over this are run supplementary weft bundles of magenta alaari silk (only on the front of the cloth), held in place by warp threads some 50mm apart. The alaari patterns are the same in each strip (though sometimes arranged in a different sequence), and are primarily geometric though some are recognizable as Koran boards. The warp ends have been hemmed by machine.
- Production date
- 1890-1910 (circa)
- Dimensions
-
Length: 222 centimetres
-
Width: 73 centimetres
- Curator's comments
- This is a classic example of Yoruba aso oke weaving of a type that was made c.1900 (compare Af1900,-.37 to 41, given by Dr Coker Adams in 1900.) The acquisition register has a comment by John Picton that it came from Ilorin. This was most probably based on the general understanding that such complicated weft-float compositions were primarily made there. The strips would have been hand-sewn together originally, and the machine sewing is a later replacement or repair.
- Location
- Not on display
- Acquisition date
- 1966
- Department
- Africa, Oceania and the Americas
- Registration number
- Af1966,01.24