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1956.9.55

Belt of beadwork on textile, with a design of black lozenges with white centres on a white background, and 2 green panels with white lozenges, and twisted tie cords at the ends. [N.B. 'DCF 2004-2006 What's Upstairs?' 14/7/2005]

1956.9.55

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Collection type
Object
Description
Belt of beadwork on textile, with a design of black lozenges with white centres on a white background, and 2 green panels with white lozenges, and twisted tie cords at the ends. [N.B. 'DCF 2004-2006 What's Upstairs?' 14/7/2005]
Geographical reference
South Africa
Africa > Southern Africa > South Africa
KwaZulu / Natal Manzibomvu
Date / Period
Date made: Before 1935
Date collected
1935
Acquisition information
Donated: 1956
Materials and processes
Material Bead, Material Textile, Material Glass, Material String, Process Beadwork, Process Woven, Process Stitched, Process Twisted
Dimensions
Width: max 87 mm
Object numbers
Accession number: 1956.9.55 Other numbers: Powell-Cotton no. 144
Research and responses

Related Documents File - Typed list "July 1950 [added in ink "Collected July 1956"] Curios Collected in Zululand in 1935. Presented by the Trustees the Powell-Cotton Museum. To the Pitt Rivers Museum Oxford" giving the Powell-Cotton number, a description of the object, the "Native Name", a date ?collected and "Place Lat: and Long:"

Notes on beads taken by Miss A. Powell-Cotton. Durban Museum. Language of Colours Among the Zulu's. 11/10/35. Bead ornaments are made by Zulu girls and sent to their lovers as letters, the colour of the beads and their arrangement expressing a meaning which is well understood among them. (1) For instance the simplest form of letter is and (INGETE) or single bead string of two colours e.g. one half white the other pink. White stands for the girl's heart full of love, Pink but her lovers poverty is as great as her love towards him, equal number of pink and white, this of course implies an ernest appeal to him to work hard in order that he may purchase her from her father. (2) Another example in Yellow and Red - Yellow showing the young man well to do, Red - the girl weeping on account of this as he is not going to her. (3) Chiefly White beads with some Yellow, the White the girl is full of love, Yellow thinks the man is rich enough to marry her. (4) Consisting of White beads. - the girl's love, Black - that she is unable to go to him, Pink - that he is poor, and Green - the result that she is lean and sickly." [EB 11/2/2002]

Search terms: Clothing, Ornament, Belt, Waist Ornament

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