LARGE Mud Cloth - Mali - SOLD

Price: $0.00


 


Mud cloth is made of narrow strips of hand-spun yarn. Both men and women dye & decorate the cloth. The cloth is dyed yellow by dipping it into an extract of leaves. The outline of the design is then applied using a dark mud from a dried-up pond. After drying, the cloth is dipped in water to wash off the mud. This time-consuming process is repeated several times, after which they are soaked in a caustic soda bath to bleach out and whiten the yellow areas that have not been painted in mud. In effect, the mud dye is not the design; rather, it establishes the negative space around the areas of white design. The design elements are drawn from a variety of sources: plants, animals, proverbs & historical events. These cloths are worn as tunics by hunters & other men of the Bambara tribe of Mali. Note: mud cloth should be dry cleaned only and should not be placed in direct sunlight.

Approximately 81" square