The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of May 7, 2024
Ceremonial beadwork for a Xhosa royal woman: headdress (umnqwazi), pendant, breast cover (incebetha), pair of anklets (izitsaba)
1800s
Location: not on view
Did You Know?
The beads to make an ensemble like this cost several cattle in the early nineteenth century, an amount most couldn't afford.Description
Elite Xhosa women once wore beaded garments like this on festive occasions. Made almost completely from imported Venetian or Bohemian glass beads, they were overt status symbols. Imported beads functioned as money for the Xhosa between about 1770 and 1829. These garments’ female maker carefully selected beads of the highest quality, uniform in color, shape, and size. Made in the same shape as the pendant, a swallowtail-shaped apron (CMA 2010.206) worn under the skirt completed the ensemble.- 2022(Axis Gallery, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)2022–The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Pemberton, John. African Beaded Art: Power and Adornment. Northampton, Mass: Smith College Museum of Art, 2008. pp. 170–172
- {{cite web|title=Ceremonial beadwork for a Xhosa royal woman: headdress (umnqwazi), pendant, breast cover (incebetha), pair of anklets (izitsaba)|url=false|author=|year=1800s|access-date=07 May 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2022.49