Oromo Bench with Plaited Leather Seat & Custom Upholstered Cushion

An old bench with a new silk cushion. The two seem to get along.

This bench with a plaited leather seat and custom upholstered cushion was made by the Oromo peoples of Ethiopia, East Africa, in the late 19th or early 20th century. It is wood and leather, with the silk cushion a later addition. Across Africa, seats were made to signal the rank of a household or its head, and a large Oromo bench like this was a prestigious piece of furniture. Fine rows of pattern cover the dark backrest and side rails, and the posts end in flared legs. The cushion's red and gold medallions recall a Central Asian textile. Seventy-nine and a half inches long.

Two continents, one seat, no disagreement.