Kuba Shoowa Prestige Panel

A faded plum brown cloth with ghostly lattice lines and one corner gone.

This Shoowa prestige panel is Kuba, from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Central Africa, and dates to the 20th century. It is piled raffia. The Kuba are known for raffia textiles in which a few simple elements are repeated and varied until the surface seems to move. A reddish brown ground carries tan lattice lines and darker blotchy patches, with a diamond grid faintly visible. A corner at lower right is missing, the upper edge is curled, and the color looks sun faded overall. It measures 22 inches wide and 24.5 long.

Worn thin and handsome anyway, like an old coat.