Wrapper
| Culture | Asante |
|---|---|
| Culture | Akan |
| Title | Wrapper |
| Date | 1988 |
| Medium | Cotton, thread, and and dye |
| Dimensions | Overall: 138 1/2 in. (351.8 cm) Sight: 102 in. (259.1 cm) |
| Credit Line | Gift of Daniel Mato in Honor of Roy and Sophia Sieber, Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University |
| Accession Number | 88.16 |
| This artwork is currently off display. You may be able to see this artwork by filling out an art viewing room request. | |
This red cloth has a grid pattern composed of rows of squares. A geometric or abstract motif is repeated next to one another inside each square of the grid. The motifs fill the entire cloth and are printed in a shiny dark brown-black dye.
Adinkra cloth dates to at least the early nineteenth century and is known for its distinctive technique of stamping motifs carrying symbolic meanings related to Asante proverbs, moral beliefs, and cultural values. Cloth makers printed symbols on this cloth using stamps typically carved of calabash that was dipped into a dye made from the bark of a badia tree found in northern Ghana. Adinkra cloth is often printed in central Ghana, where Akans and Asante reside and where badia tree bark is accessible in markets through trade. Men most often print adinkra cloth, with some women involved in preparing the dye and selling adinkra cloth in markets. Akans and Asante wear adinkra cloth as clothing, in which the cloth’s color signals appropriate uses such as white cloth for church and social events, and red and black cloths for funerals. In the early twenty-first century, cloth makers introduced screen-printed adinkra cloth that has transformed the cloth’s production and meanings.
Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.
Request this image
The Eskenazi Museum of Art provides images of its collection, free of charge, upon request.
This artwork is under copyright protection. You can request the image and it will be emailed to you when the request is complete.
Cite this page
"Wrapper | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=88.16