Zande barkcloth sheet
Accession Number:
1940.12.018
Country:
Sudan
Region:
[Southern Sudan] Western Equatoria Yubu
Cultural Group:
Zande?
Date Made:
By 1937
Materials:
Bark Cloth Textile Plant , Plant Fibre , Grass Fibre Plant?
Process:
Beaten , Stitched , Dyed
Dimensions:
Max L = 1330, Max W = 1030, th = 1.3 mm [RTS 19/7/2005].
Weight:
472.8 g
Other Owners:
Collected by Alan Francis Britton (aka Frank Britton) on April 1937, while posted to the Sudan with the RAF [RTS 26/7/2005].
Field Collector:
Alan Francis Britton aka Frank Britton
PRM Source:
Alan Francis Britton aka Frank Britton
Acquired:
Loaned December 1940
Collected Date:
April 1937
Description:
Beaten barkcloth consisting of 6 narrow panels sewn together to form a rectangular sheet.
These panels have been aligned along their bottom edge, but the top edge has a stepped profile, as some of the strips are of uneven length.
The pieces are of different colours, and are arranged with naturally orangey brown pieces (Pantone 730C) sandwiched between 3 brown panels dyed with mud (Pantone 7533C), with each strip being of varying width.
They are stitched together using a yellow grass fibre thread (Pantone 7506C), using oblique stitches that run across the join.
The exception appears across one of the orangey brown panels, which is itself made up of 2 pieces, sewn end to end.
Here the edges overlap one another, and have been sewn using a technique that creates crossover stitches on one face, and 2 rows of stitches on the other.
The inside face of the cloth is covered with a lattice of impressed squares, made by the crosshatched head of the beater and randomly applied to the surface; these appear as small bumps on the opposite side.
The sheet is complete, but has some damage to the surface in areas, a few tears, some longer tears or slits along the two ends, and numerous small lozenge shaped holes that seem more regular and may relate to how the cloth was fastened, or possibly displayed.
There are also some red ochre stains on the outer surface.
The barkcloth has a weight of 472.8 grams, and a maximum length of 1330 mm, width of 1030 mm and thickness of 1.3 mm.
Collected by Alan Francis Britton (aka Frank Britton) at Li Yubu on April 1937, while posted to the Sudan with the RAF. Although the collector does not give the piece any cultural attribution, a Zande origin for this piece is probable; note that the style of crossed stitching seen here is also seen on 1930.86.47-48, which were barkcloths acquired from the Zande by Evans-Pritchard around a decade before.
Evans-Pritchard reviews the history of use of barkcloth amongst the Zande, using reports of early travellers such as Schweinfurth, Junker and Casati. These suggest that the Zande used skins as their primary clothing, with barkcloth being something of a luxury, introduced through contacts with groups to the south; by the time Evans-Pritchard did his fieldwork amongst the Zande in 1926-1930, the use of barkcloth had become ‘universal’. It was supposedly made from the fig tree, or roko (Evans-Pritchard 1971, The Azande, pp 79-85). According to Larken, barkcloth manufacture was not a specialised profession, but something 'practised by all' (P.M. Larken, 1926, "An Account of the Zande", Sudan Notes and Records IX no. 1, p. 10). He describes the process as follows: "During the rains, about July, two horizontal cuts are made round the stem four or five feet apart, a perpendicular one joining them. The bark is loosened and removed in a single piece. The outer skin is scraped away with a knife, and the dark brown fibrous remainder beaten on a log with a wata. This is usually the point of a small tusk about a foot long. The pointed end is used as a handle, the other, of which the face has been scored with a series of closely-crossing lines to a depth of about the tenth of an inch, as a stamp, the bark, lying on the log, being punched all over with it. The process is gradual, and not too much force may be employed. The fibres become spread out and the thickness of the substance reduced, though somewhat unevenly so. The resulting cloth when dry is of a light reddish brown colour, harsh in texture, and bearing throughout its not very long life the marks of the corrugations on the face of the wata. If the tree is so small that the strip of cloth is not big enough for its destined purpose, other strips are sewn on to the first with fibre. The cloth may be dyed black by immersion in the mud of a stream, where chips and pieces of the wood of a banga tree have been placed. Parti-coloured garments of black and brown are often noticed" (Larken op.cit. pp 34-35). Brock also describes barkcloth manufacture, adding that the bark is "prepared with oil" and "... either left in its natural yellowish brown colour or dyed red or black according to the fashion of the moment. Great care is taken in the correct wearing of the rokko with respect to its folds and which side overlaps the other. It is held round the body by a belt and drawn up between the legs, the ends either being carried right up to the arm pits or turned down over the thighs. The fig tree from which the bark is taken is found in most mens' villages and they always plant cuttings from the trees when starting a new village' (R.G.C. Brock, "Some Notes on the Zande Tribe as Found in the Meridi District", Sudan Notes and News 1, 1918, 254).
For Zande beaters, of the type used to produce barkcloth, see 1934.8.125-6, 1931.66.15 and possibly 1927.54.61.
Rachael Sparks 29/7/2005.
Collected by Alan Francis Britton (aka Frank Britton) at Li Yubu on April 1937, while posted to the Sudan with the RAF. Although the collector does not give the piece any cultural attribution, a Zande origin for this piece is probable; note that the style of crossed stitching seen here is also seen on 1930.86.47-48, which were barkcloths acquired from the Zande by Evans-Pritchard around a decade before.
Evans-Pritchard reviews the history of use of barkcloth amongst the Zande, using reports of early travellers such as Schweinfurth, Junker and Casati. These suggest that the Zande used skins as their primary clothing, with barkcloth being something of a luxury, introduced through contacts with groups to the south; by the time Evans-Pritchard did his fieldwork amongst the Zande in 1926-1930, the use of barkcloth had become ‘universal’. It was supposedly made from the fig tree, or roko (Evans-Pritchard 1971, The Azande, pp 79-85). According to Larken, barkcloth manufacture was not a specialised profession, but something 'practised by all' (P.M. Larken, 1926, "An Account of the Zande", Sudan Notes and Records IX no. 1, p. 10). He describes the process as follows: "During the rains, about July, two horizontal cuts are made round the stem four or five feet apart, a perpendicular one joining them. The bark is loosened and removed in a single piece. The outer skin is scraped away with a knife, and the dark brown fibrous remainder beaten on a log with a wata. This is usually the point of a small tusk about a foot long. The pointed end is used as a handle, the other, of which the face has been scored with a series of closely-crossing lines to a depth of about the tenth of an inch, as a stamp, the bark, lying on the log, being punched all over with it. The process is gradual, and not too much force may be employed. The fibres become spread out and the thickness of the substance reduced, though somewhat unevenly so. The resulting cloth when dry is of a light reddish brown colour, harsh in texture, and bearing throughout its not very long life the marks of the corrugations on the face of the wata. If the tree is so small that the strip of cloth is not big enough for its destined purpose, other strips are sewn on to the first with fibre. The cloth may be dyed black by immersion in the mud of a stream, where chips and pieces of the wood of a banga tree have been placed. Parti-coloured garments of black and brown are often noticed" (Larken op.cit. pp 34-35). Brock also describes barkcloth manufacture, adding that the bark is "prepared with oil" and "... either left in its natural yellowish brown colour or dyed red or black according to the fashion of the moment. Great care is taken in the correct wearing of the rokko with respect to its folds and which side overlaps the other. It is held round the body by a belt and drawn up between the legs, the ends either being carried right up to the arm pits or turned down over the thighs. The fig tree from which the bark is taken is found in most mens' villages and they always plant cuttings from the trees when starting a new village' (R.G.C. Brock, "Some Notes on the Zande Tribe as Found in the Meridi District", Sudan Notes and News 1, 1918, 254).
For Zande beaters, of the type used to produce barkcloth, see 1934.8.125-6, 1931.66.15 and possibly 1927.54.61.
Rachael Sparks 29/7/2005.
Primary Documentation:
Accession Book Entry
[Loans II, p.
349] Wing Commander A.F.
BRITTON ...
nr Salisbury [p.
349] 1940.12.018 - One piece of cloth made from bark-fibre, consisting of 3 strips of black cloth & 2 strips of tan cloth joined together to form one piece 54 inches by 40 inches approximately.
YUBO, SUDAN, April 1937, property of collector A.F.
Britton.
Card Catalogue Entry - Information as above, plus comment "Coll. in April 1937 by lender" [RTS 30/1/2004].
Pitt Rivers Museum label - 1940.12.018 - Bark cloth, 3 strips of black and 2 of tan, joined to form one piece c. 54" x 40". Coll. YUBO, SUDAN, in April 1937, and lent by Wing Commander A. F. Britton. [Brown luggage tag, stored in RDF; MdeA 21/6/2005]. PITT RIVERS MUSEUM. AFRICA, SUDAN, YUBU. Barkcloth. Lent by A.F. Britton. 1940.12.018 [textile label, sewn onto corner; RTS 19/7/2005].
Card Catalogue Entry - Information as above, plus comment "Coll. in April 1937 by lender" [RTS 30/1/2004].
Pitt Rivers Museum label - 1940.12.018 - Bark cloth, 3 strips of black and 2 of tan, joined to form one piece c. 54" x 40". Coll. YUBO, SUDAN, in April 1937, and lent by Wing Commander A. F. Britton. [Brown luggage tag, stored in RDF; MdeA 21/6/2005]. PITT RIVERS MUSEUM. AFRICA, SUDAN, YUBU. Barkcloth. Lent by A.F. Britton. 1940.12.018 [textile label, sewn onto corner; RTS 19/7/2005].
