Kente Handwoven Cloth Asante Ghana African Art

Description

Title
Kente Handwoven Cloth Asante Ghana African Art
Type of Object
Handwoven cloth
Country of Origin
Ghana
People
Asante
Materials
Hand woven cloth, possibly silk or combination
Approximate Age
20th Century
Height (in)
75 inches.
Width (in)
36 inches.
Depth (in)
8
Overall Condition
Fair. Most of our pieces have spent decades on at least two continents, and have been treasured by several owners.   Small splits, scrapes and cracks are a normal part of their patina attesting to their age and extensive use.  We examine each piece carefully when we receive it and report any damage we find in our listings.  Please look carefully at the pictures which may also reveal condition and damage.
Damage/Repair
Repaired holes and small holes.
We do not recommend laundering textiles, and do not accept returns of textiles which have been laundered in any manner.  Even dry cleaning is too much for some of these antique textiles.  For some of them, a very gentle HAND washing  (NEVER MACHINE, on any setting)  in cool water with a very gentle detergent works, but even then, dyes may not be colorfast, and fabric may be less strong than it appears.
Additional Information:
A large royal Kente cloth wore by Asante men.  Strips are hand sewn together. Estimated age more than 40 years. Kente cloth is the royal cloth of the Ashante, of Ghana. In many cases, the thread was obtained by carefully un-picking silk garments, and reweaving them. The looms have two or three heddles. Legend says that the Kente cloth weavers learned their skill from watching a spider, Anansi, who is a significant figure in African folklore.
The pattern on this textile is known as
Obi Nkye Obi Kwa Mu si
which is translated into " sooner or later one could stray into another person's path" which means "nobody is perfect and everybody makes mistakes. If some one happens to get in your way or does something to offend you, it is important to be understanding and to forgive that person". The blue is the color of the sky and symbol of majesty, peace and harmony. In some cases the blue is associated with good fortune.
Recommended Reading:
Doran H. Ross (ed.),Wrapped in Pride. Ghanaian Kente and African American Identity., UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History. Los Angeles, 1998
Duncan Clarke, The Art of African Textiles, Thunder Bay Press, 1997
Peter Adler and Nicholas Barbard, African Majesty.  The Textile Art of The Ashanti and Ewe, Thames and Hudson. London, 1992
ME0518
**121424**
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