Beaded Skirt or Cape
Xhosa people (Mfengu subgroup), Eastern Cape, South Africa (map), d. early 20th c.
Beadwork on imported cream colored flannel cloth, rubbed with red-brown ochre
46.5” w x 53.5” l (118 x 136 cm)
Price: $950
I found this textile in England around 1980. A similar example is illustrated in Stevenson (2000: 62–3, ill. 33). The Mfengu are of Nguni origin, settling in the 19th century in the Eastern Cape in the wake of the Mfecane and undergoing acculturation to the native Xhosa people.
