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Barkcloth Making



Barkcloth is an ancient craft among the Buganda people living in the Buganda kingdom in southern Uganda. For generations, the Baganda royal family and the rest of the community have produced barkcloths which were made by craftsmen of the Ngonge clan. This clan is headed by a kaboggoza, the hereditary chief craftsman.

To prepare the barkcloth, the Ngonge clan uses one of the oldest forms of craftsmanship known to humankind; a prehistoric technique that predates the invention of weaving. Many Buganda witches and mediums wear these veils every day since they are regarded as a magnet for ghosts. Some of these mediums wear elaborate headbands with pieces of barkcloth that cover their eyes. These arboreal veils are believed to act as a portal into the spirit world.

In the wet season, bark from the Mutuba tree (Ficus natalensis) is harvested and then beaten for hours with various types of wooden mallets to get a fine texture and a uniform terracotta color. The barkcloth is typically produced in an open shed to keep the bark from drying out.

Both sexes are permitted to wear the barkcloth like a toga, but women usually add a sash around the waist. In contrast to the common barkcloth which is terracotta in colour, the barkcloths of kings and chiefs are dyed white or black and are usually worn in a different style in order to emphasize their status. Traditionally kings and chiefs wear the cloth during coronation or healing ceremonies, funerals, and cultural gatherings, but the cloth can also be used as curtains, bedding, mosquito screens, and storage.

In the Buganda kingdom, barkcloth was widely produced in almost every village. However, the introduction of cotton cloth by Arabian traders in the nineteenth century slowed its production and limited its use to spiritual and cultural functions. Despite this, it still remains recognized as a marker of specific cultural and social traditions among the Baganda people. Additionally, recent years have seen the production of barkcloth greatly promoted and encouraged in Buganda.

Today, barkcloth is commonly known to be a thick, soft, slightly textured fabric, owing to its resemblance to the bark of a tree, and emerging designers believe the barkcloth will become the next eco-friendly fabric.


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