Tapestry - 64 cm - 52 cm - Fabrics

Among the Kuba and the Kuba sub-groups (Bangyeen, Bangwoong, Shoowa), men are responsible for preparing the plant fibers used to make this type of fabric.

The raphia fiber comes from young shoots of a palm tree. This fiber cannot be spun like flax or cotton but must be twisted/torqued together.

Before that, the fiber must be softened, as it is hard and extremely rough in its original state. All of the weaving craftsman skill comes into play. The fiber is thinned to the limit of breakage with the help of various scrapers, metal pieces, snail shells, …

Once the fibers are ready, weaving and embroidery work is entrusted to pregnant women, who will devote many hours of work to it, sometimes even years for the most complex pieces, making it an extremely precious object.

The fabric is coated with a cloth and plunged into water in a mortar where it is crushed with a pestle, which has the effect of breaking the fibers and giving it its final softness.

The fabric, once finished, is not necessarily used for practical purposes. Depending on its quality, it can have several functions:

- It may be offered by the village to a deceased person, thus contributing in the hereafter to consolidating existing alliances and rendering the dead worthy in the eyes of the ancestors. The fabric thus bears a message to the gods;

- It can also serve as marriage money, a dowry, constituting a family treasure;

- or serve as a medium of exchange in important transactions.

Thus, these fabrics are regarded by the BaKuba as a placement intended to be passed down to a lineage.

Different variants of these Kuba raphia fabrics exist:

- Shoowa fabrics, of the eponymous Kuba sub-group, are small shaved velour carpets, usually square. They are also called the “Kasai velvet.”

These velours are obtained from a simple raphia warp pierced throughout with a strand of raphia that is cut one centimeter from the warp on the front face. They are generally covered with geometric motifs that correspond to the Kuba scarification patterns.

- Ntshak are women's loincloths, decorated by women, using the appliqué technique.