Catalog Number |
CAS 0493-0439 | |
Category | Bead & Leatherwork | |
Object Name | Dress | |
Culture | Gabra | |
Global Region | Sub-Saharan Africa | |
Country | Kenya | |
State/Prov./Dist. | Meikona, Gabraland | |
County | ||
Other Geographic Data | Meikona, Gabraland | |
Maker's Name | Owner’s mother (name not recorded) | |
Date of Manufacture | 1976 | |
Collection Name | Torry Collection (Gabra) | |
Materials | Goat hide; Sheep skin | |
Description | Woman’s one-piece wrap-around dress, made in three rectangular panels (2 wide, 1 narrow) that are seamed together side by side; Upper half of each panel consists of a single rectangular piece of goat or sheep skin and the lower half consists of alternating narrow and wide skin strips in alternating light brown and dyed (?) reddish brown colors; When the three panels are laid out along side each other, a narrow strip similar to the ones in the lower half of each panel is laid along the entire length of each panel, extending from the top to the bottom; According to original field notes, this dress is worn by wrapping it around a woman’s body, under her arms, and securing it by a shoulder strap or belt; In pre-colonial times, married women wore this type of dress for daily wear, and might have been buried in it, but now (in 1977), it is only worn at a woman’s wedding and may or may not be worn for burial. | |
Dimensions (cm) | Width = ca. 119.0, Thickness = 0.3, Length = ca. 132.0 |