Kuba Shoowa Prestige Panel

Tall vertical zigzags crowd together, narrow as a picket fence in a high wind.

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 pile on a Shoowa cloth is cut raffia, sheared to an even nap that collectors often call Kasai velvet. Closely spaced vertical zigzag bands in black and cream run the full height of the cloth. The lines are fine and strongly rhythmic, with a darker tan border at the sides. Slight puckering shows at the lower edge. The panel is 20 inches wide by 20 long.

All the energy goes up and down, and none of it is wasted.