Kuba Shoowa Prestige Panel

A dense brown basket weave that looks ready to be sat on.

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. Cream interlaced bands cross diagonally over a dark brown and black ground, filling the cloth in a tight, small-scale plaited lattice. The pale pink border is narrow and the centre seam is faintly visible. It is 20.5 inches across and 23.5 long.

Cloth pretending to be basketry, with remarkable commitment.