Kpokpo Cloth

Country cloth is a thick, heavy, cloth, traditionally made from locally grown cotton that is spun into thread, dyed, and woven into strips on a tripod loom. The strips are then sewn together edge to edge to form the finished cloth. Such cloth was, in the past, regarded as a sign or wealth and Prestige. This is thought to be an example of kpokpoi, or kpokpo, cloth, relating to country cloth made up of strips of varying colours and patterns, used to make a larger, more complex, pattern. It is composed of eight strips of weft faced plain weave with undyed cotton warps, and broad bands of black, yellow and natural coloured cotton. It has a central band, composed of slim stripes of undyed, red, black and yellow, all of which are part of the ground weave. The colours of this cloth are unusual for Sierra Leone, but since it came from the Sierra Leone Exhibition Commissioners at the 1924 British Empire Exhibition, its Sierra Leone credentials are impeccable.

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Further Information

• Type: Textiles, cloth
• Object: Kpokpo Cloth
• Materials: Textile
• Culture Group: Other
• Dimensions: 3200mm [L] x 1450mm [W]
• Production Date: Pre 1925
• Associated Places: Unknown
• Associated People: Sierra Leone Exhibition Commissioners
• Museum: British Museum
• Accession Number: BM:Af.1925.1125.2

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