Bogolan
A cotton cloth from Mali, patterned in dark brown and white using fermented mud.
Also: bògòlanfini, mud cloth
Bogolan is made by the Bamana and neighbouring peoples of Mali. Men weave narrow strips of cotton, which are sewn into a cloth. Women traditionally do the dyeing. The cloth is soaked in a tea of leaves, which turns it yellow. Mud collected from ponds and left to ferment is then painted on, carefully going around the pattern so that the design is left bare. The mud reacts with the leaf dye to give a lasting dark brown. Finally the yellow is bleached from the unpainted lines, leaving them white. It was worn by hunters and by women at key moments of life.