Woman's Ceremonial Skirt

Assembled of individually worked panels sewn together, this skirt is embellished with an ever-shifting array of patterns. Although Kuba men are responsible for preparing and weaving raffia, Kuba women decorate the cloth with imagination and artistry. To make a skirt of this size, several women from the same extended family would contribute different sections. Raffia textiles have long been an important part of Kuba artistic production. At the turn of the century, when this skirt was made, European visitors to the kingdom commented on the richly patterned raffia textiles that were worn and displayed at public festivals and funerals.