Mud cloth, Mali - 17.2 Sand Scene providing a production of some

providing a production of some 4 Million bags per year

reminiscent of a time when these vessels played a pivotal role in communal rituals

and to this day it is worn at community gatherings and celebrations

A striking centrepiece on its own

Mud cloth, Mali - 17.2 Sand Scene providing a production of someBogolanfini mud cloth is a traditional handmade textile from Mali. In the Bamana language, bogo means earth or mud, lan means by means of, and fini means cloth. Each cloth is hand spun and hand woven from local cotton on narrow strip looms, the strips then sewn together into a larger cloth. It is washed, sun dried and soaked in a dye made from pounded local leaves. The designs are drawn by hand with a mud dye using a small bamboo or metal spatula,