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1948.2.2

Chequered Kente cloth

1948.2.2

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Collection type
Object
Description
Chequered Kente cloth
Long description
Rectangular piece of Kente cloth composed of four hand-woven strips of silk-cotton which are hand-sewn together along the selvedges. The warp ends have been left as a fringe at either end. Each strip of approximately 90mm is woven on a horizontal strip loom, primarily by men, and is decorated with alternating bands which once sewn together create a checkerboard pattern. There is a plain weave ground of yellow and each band includes geometric supplementary weft float designs in red, green and black. The name of the cloth is recorded by the field collector Robert Powley Wild as Mampong Ahemba. The colours used in the cloths symbolic meanings; yellow for royalty and prosperity, red for bloodshed and mourning, and black for spiritual strength and maturity, Originally reserved for Ashanti royalty, kente is now worn during special ceremonies like weddings, births, and funerals.
Geographical reference
Ghana
Africa > Western Africa > Ghana
Cultural groups
Asante
Person
Maker Kwsassi Amwah
Field collector Robert Powley Wild
PRM source Robert Powley Wild
Date / Period
Date made: Before 1948
Date collected
By 1948
Acquisition information
Found unentered: 1948
Materials and processes
Material Textile, Material Silk Textile Animal, Material Cotton Seed Fibre Textile Plant, Material Pigment, Process Woven, Process Dyed, Process Stitched, Process Supplementary Weft Woven
Object numbers
Accession number: 1948.2.2

Search terms: Textile, Specimen

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