Hat

YorubaWW-1900-029067

1900·Glass beads, cloth, and string·16.6 × 17.2 × 17.2 cm (6 1/2 × 6 3/4 × 6 3/4 in.)

<p>The Yoruba appreciate the color variations and sparkling surfaces of beads, as well as the way that they can be combined into dazzling patterns. Beads contain àse (animating force) and become further imbued with it when worn. Today titled Yoruba men wear beaded regalia as an expression of power, status, and divine sanction. This beaded cap features an interlaced motif with strong royal associations. [See also 2009.580].</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1900
Medium: Glass beads, cloth, and string
Dimensions: 16.6 × 17.2 × 17.2 cm (6 1/2 × 6 3/4 × 6 3/4 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Yoruba

Artist

Yoruba

Textile

Yoruba is an Atlantic–Congo language that is spoken in West Africa, primarily in South West Nigeria, Benin, and parts of Togo. It is spoken by the Yoruba people. Yoruba speakers number roughly 50 million, including around 2 million second-language or L2 speakers. As a pluricentric language, it is primarily spoken in a dialectal area spanning Nigeria, Benin, and Togo with smaller migrated communities in Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and Gambia.

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