Man’s Wrapper

For centuries the Ewe people, along with their neighbors the Asante, were masters of the strip weaving technique. Whereas kente is the name used by the Asante for their fine strip-woven cloth, the Ewe people called theirs keta. Woven by Ewe men, these cloths are made on narrow, portable looms. The ground fabric consists of lengthwise running stripes that are interrupted by blocks of decorative patterning achieved through a weft inlay technique. The more complex the weave, the more expensive the cloth. Keta cloth often includes images of animals, humans, and other figurative elements in the center of the blocks. Such motifs were meant to convey the wisdom of proverbs. For example, a hand might express "it is with the hand we work." Because of the similarity of these textiles, it is often difficult to distinguish the origin of individual pieces.