Great presentation on ndop cloth of Africa, special post

 The Hajii Baba club brought Dr. Janet Purdy on  Saturday to speak online on the indigo resist-dyed cotton cloth of Cameroon,West Africa, known as ndop. It's a ceremonial cloth with royal privilege. There are many ancient kingdoms in Africa, the ruler of each  known as the Fon. He determines who can wear this cloth and when and in what form.

They're woven in very narrow strips by men, then stitched together,  with patterns drawn on by men and stitched in with raffia by women. They are  then indigo dyed, the raffia acting as the resist. 

These cloths can be enormous.  They serve as ceremonial backdrops as well as clothing. There are traditional designs, including shapes used as protective images, going back centuries.

The slides have enough information to follow largely without my commentary. Here goes.

some of the modern equipment used to determine how best to curate rare cloth, how much exposure to light is safe.

This is a Fon who placed his Kingdom under the protection of German power, dressed in German uniform with his assistant literally attached to the ceremonial ndop cloth .

There are several books on this topic, which an interested reader can track down, but this is an overview of these cultural and historical treasured artefacts. Dr Purdy brought brief and accessible information to this textile enthusiast who isn't a scholar, very much appreciated.