African cloth
Object
Fabric
Object number
2008.18
Physical Description
This black and white cotton cloth was bought from an African fabric shop in Dalston. Clothing made of this block printed fabric is traditionally worn for funerals or by older people. The designs come from Ghana, Togo, Nigeria and Benin republic but the cloth itself is made in China, Holland, India and Thailand.
Associated Place
Material
Cotton
Exhibition Label
Gye Nyame Fabric
The symbol on this fabric means ‘nothing but God’ in the Adinkra tradition of the Akan people of Ghana. Adinkra symbols were originally printed on cloth worn by royals during important ceremonies like funerals and religious festivals. They are now used in many different ways.
Clothes with the Gye Nyame symbol are traditionally worn at funerals or by older people. This fabric is from Afrique Fabrics on Kingsland High Street, Dalston, one of many textile and tailoring shops in Hackney catering for African heritage communities.
Being African in Hackney: 1960s-2020s
14 September 2021 to 14 February 2022
The symbol on this fabric means ‘nothing but God’ in the Adinkra tradition of the Akan people of Ghana. Adinkra symbols were originally printed on cloth worn by royals during important ceremonies like funerals and religious festivals. They are now used in many different ways.
Clothes with the Gye Nyame symbol are traditionally worn at funerals or by older people. This fabric is from Afrique Fabrics on Kingsland High Street, Dalston, one of many textile and tailoring shops in Hackney catering for African heritage communities.
Being African in Hackney: 1960s-2020s
14 September 2021 to 14 February 2022
On display?
No