Waist girdle with a grass fringe and hide ties, worn by women [RTS 13/7/2004].

Collection type: Object
Description: Waist girdle with a grass fringe and hide ties, worn by women [RTS 13/7/2004].
Long description: Waist girdle consisting of several short lengths of flat yellow grass (Pantone 7508C), all cut to the same length and doubled over at the top to form a series of small bunches. These were placed side by side and knotted together using flat strips of a darker brown plant fibre (Pantone 7532C), creating a fringe. This was then made of double thickness by sewing a second fringe behind the first, using twisted plant fibre string, possibly cotton, in a broad tacking stitch across the top; this string is secured in a knot at either end. Fastening ties were made by twisting the ends of the plant fibre strips to form a short, triple-stranded cord that extends from either end of the girdle, with additional narrow strips of brown animal hide knotted onto their ends (Pantone 7504C).One of these strips is partially covered with long golden animal hair on one face (Pantone 7403C), and terminates with a large loop, secured with a further knot. The girdle is complete, although some of the grass fringe strips are bent. It has an extended length of 865 mm, and weighs 20.1 grams. When tied, the girdle has an internal width of around 250 mm, suitable for a child or very small waisted woman. The fringe itself is 26.5 mm long and 3.8 mm wide across the top; each grass strip is around 4 mm wide; the twisted fibre ties have a diameter of 2 mm and the hide ties are 4 mm wide [RTS 13/7/2004].
Geographical reference: South Sudan
Africa > Eastern Africa > South Sudan; Upper Nile Sobat River
Cultural groups: Atuot
Person: Field collector Rowland Percy Somerset Elderton; PRM source Rowland Percy Somerset Elderton
Date / Period: Date made: Before 1909
Date collected: 1909
Acquisition information: Donated: 1952
Materials and processes: Material Grass Fibre Plant, Material Animal Hide Skin, Material Plant Fibre, Material Cotton Seed Fibre Yarn Plant, Process Twisted, Process Stitched, Process Knotted
Dimensions: Length 26.5 mm fringe, Length 865 mm, Width 250 mm when tied, approx, Weight 20.1 g
Object numbers: Accession number: 1952.5.61
Research and responses: The term 'White Nile' clearly refers here to the Bahr el Abiad river. The Sobat River is located in the modern administrative district of Upper Nile [RTS 11/11/2003].

Search terms: Ornament, Clothing, Waist Ornament, Belt

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