Description
In this display piece, the jewel-like colors and designs in the weaving are a contemporary revival of akotofohana, a 19th-century cloth worn by monarchs in Madagascar as their most luxurious mode of dress. Malagasy people consider cloth to be the ultimate gift: a valuable symbol of relationships forged between rulers, individuals, ancestors, and spirits. Rulers presented the fine mulberry silk textiles to foreign dignitaries as they established and built diplomatic ties around the world. For example, Queen Ranavalona III of Madagascar sent two akotofohana cloths to US President Grover Cleveland in 1886.
Provenance
Accession Number
149787
Medium
Silk, warp-faced plain weave with supplementary patterning warps and supplementary brocading wefts; five panels joined; finished at both ends with knotted and braided warp fringe
Dimensions
278.1 × 172.7 cm (109 1/2 × 68 in.) Weft repeat: point repeat Fringe length: 9 in. (on side with accession number label), 10 in.
Classification
weaving
Credit Line
Ada Turnbull Hertle Endowment