Ndop cloth

20th century

Secrets Embedded in Symbols

Blue cloths with white ideograms call people to attention in parts of Cameroon. They proclaim that it is time for law enforcement-someone is about to face the consequences of causing trouble or acting irresponsibly. Some are worn as skirts by leaders, while others are hung behind thrones or stools, like those seen in the center of this gallery.

Leaders can read the secrets embedded in the signs which are known as nsibidi. This term is derived from a verb that signifies a person who is mentally agile, able to be cunning and play with double meanings. Unlike most writing systems which strive to reveal knowledge, nsibidi is designed to conceal it from those who haven't passed a sequence of ritual tests.

One sign that is generally known is that of triangular patterns, which symbolize a leopard's spots or claws and remind viewers that the initiated members of the Leopard Society are in charge of the proceedings. With such a cloth, a ritual space is charged and ready for serious discussions to begin.

Cotton, strip weave and tritik with indigo dye

59 x 137 1/2in. (149.9 x 349.3cm)

Gift of Katherine White and the Boeing Company

81.17.780

Now on view at the Seattle Art Museum

Resources

Exhibition HistoryLos Angeles, California, Frederick S. Wight Art Gallery, University of California, African Art in Motion: Icon and Act, Jan. 20 - Mar. 17, 1974 (Washington, D.C., National Gallery of Art, May 5 - Sept. 22, 1974). Text by Robert Farris Thompson. No cat. no., pp. 179-80, reproduced pl. 219 (as textile).

Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Lessons from the Institute of Empathy, Mar. 31, 2018 - ongoing.

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