The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 20, 2024
Hat (laket)
early 1900s
Pin: 21.6 cm (8 1/2 in.); Width at bottom: 11.4 x 15.9 cm (4 1/2 x 6 1/4 in.)
Educational Purchase Fund 1915.467
Location: not on view
Description
Titled Kuba men and prominent women wear the laket, a small ornate dome-shaped hat. An essential fashion item of adult men in good social standing, it focuses special attention on the head as a significant marker of individual identity, ethnic affiliation, status, and role in society. This prestige object is secured on the crown of the head with a nine-and-a-half-inch metal pin that pierces through the hat onto a clump of hair. This laket is made from raffia palm fiber coiled into threads and woven in different patterns. There are two examples of the laket: the plain type with the flat top, and the more elaborate type called the laket mishiing.- {{cite web|title=Hat (laket)|url=false|author=|year=early 1900s|access-date=20 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1915.467