Ncaka kot woman’s overskirt (Bushoong), early 20thcentury.
Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Raffia, 162 x 63 cm.
The Trustees of the British Museum, London.
Among the most distinguishing features of the Kuba of the
south-central Democratic Republic of the Congo are the
elaborate surface decorations of woven raffia textiles. Worn over
longer, cermonial skirts, the women’s overskirts are worn for
special occasions, such as funerals, at which time the raffia skirts
and overskirts are worn by not only the corpse, but also her
family and friends in a celebration of the deceased life. As in
other neighbouring groups, weaving is gender-specific among
the Kuba and men are responsible for the various stages of fibre
preparation and weaving completion. Additionally, they are
responsible for assembling the overskirt of a doubled section of
plain woven raffia cloth. As a foundation, next, the women
embroider the raffia for the central panel and borders.
In this example, applique and embroidered motifs are spaced
widely across the central panel. The embroidery is completed on
the white cloth with black-dyed raffia thread. Each motif is
named in correspondance with the shape it represents, circle,
dog tail, leaves, etc. The Bushoong women in the Kuba capital
village are ascribed with this type of embroidery, which is
completed by pregnant royal women who are confined to their
domestic compounds. Also, during a mourning period, a lot of
time is spent sewing and embroidering to replenish the
ceremonial supplies which were used as gravegoods.