The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 25, 2024

Akwete head wrapper

Akwete head wrapper

c. 1960s
Cotton
Overall: 223.5 x 81.3 cm (88 x 32 in.)
Donated by Richard Little from his experience at Comprehensive High School, Aiyetoro, Nigeria, 1965–67 2022.22
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

A fashionable young woman in the 1960s may have paired this head wrapper with a blouse and miniskirt.

Description

This head wrapper is a complex example of cloth unique to the southeastern town of Akwete. Learning from a young age, women there weave part-time on a horizontal loom. Weavers add extra weft (horizontal) threads to create patterns and designs. Abstracted motifs (like the zig-zags, "combs," and stars here) make reference to families or societal roles, as well as objects, and historical events.
  • c. 1965–67–2022
    Richard Little, by purchase in Nigeria
    2022
    Richard Little, Lakewood, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2022–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Akwete head wrapper|url=false|author=Igbo-style weaver, Nigeria|year=c. 1960s|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2022.22