Barkcloth

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other uses, see Bark cloth (disambiguation).
Barkcloth jacket from Kalimantan, Indonesia
Fijian masi
Hawaiian kapa from the 18th century.

Barkcloth or bark cloth is a versatile material that was once common in Asia, Africa, and the Pacific. Barkcloth comes primarily from trees of the family Moraceae, including

Artocarpus altilis, Artocarpus tamaran, and Ficus natalensis
. It is made by beating sodden strips of the fibrous inner bark of these trees into sheets, which are then finished into a variety of items. Many texts that mention "paper clothing" are actually referring to barkcloth.

Some modern cotton-based fabrics are also named "barkcloth" for their resemblance to these traditional fabrics.

Traditional

Austronesia

See also: Tapa cloth

Before the development of woven textiles, barkcloth made from trees belonging to the mulberry family (

Island Southeast Asia, Oceania (with the notable exception of Micronesia), and Madagascar. Genetic studies on the paper mulberry populations in the Pacific have all confirmed close genealogical ties to populations in Taiwan and Southern China.[1][2][3][4][5]

Though they exist in abundance in archaeological sites in Island Southeast Asia, barkcloth have largely disappeared in the region as they were replaced by woven textiles. But they survived until around the 19th century in the outlying regions of the Austronesian expansion, particularly in Island Melanesia and Polynesia, as well as the interior highlands of Borneo.[5] Some communities in Southeast Asia are reviving this practice. At Monbang traditional village on Alor Island, Indonesia, tourists can see members of the Kabola ethnic group wear barkcloth and dance traditional dances.[6]

Uganda

Democratic Republic of Congo

Barkcloth has been manufactured in Buganda, Uganda, for centuries[7] and is Uganda's sole representative on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.[8]

Vietnam

The production of barkcloth may have originated in Southeastern China, in a region adjacent to Vietnam.[9] South East China was the origins to the ancestors of many people, including those who migrated to Vietnam.[10] Throughout ancient Vietnam, the bark-cloth was widely made; this practice of producing barkcloth has survived in modern times in a few rural areas in Vietnam.[9]

Modern cotton "barkcloth"

Today, what is commonly called barkcloth is a soft, thick, slightly textured fabric, so named because it has a rough surface like that of tree bark. This barkcloth is usually made of densely woven

Lurex threads was called Las Vegas cloth, and contained as much as 65% rayon as well, making it a softer, more flowing fabric than the stiffer all-cotton rhino cloth or standard cotton barkcloth.[12]

  • Barkcloth-style skirt weight cotton
    Barkcloth-style skirt weight cotton
  • A hibiscus flower pattern on woven barkcloth
    A hibiscus flower pattern on woven barkcloth
  • 1950s woven barkcloth tablecloth with botanical design
    1950s woven barkcloth tablecloth with botanical design

See also

References

  1. ISBN 9781474283311
    .
  2. doi:10.1016/j.quaint.2014.06.062
    .
  3. ISBN 9789813292567
    .
  4. ISBN 9789813292567
    .
  5. ^
    PMID 26438853
    .
  6. ^ Sancaya, Rengga. "Kabola, Suku di Alor yang Pakaiannya Kulit Kayu". DetikTravel. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  7. ^ Adams, Kimberly (2016-01-27), Modern Bark cloth in Uganda, World in Progress, Deutsche Welle, retrieved 2016-01-28
  8. ^ "Bark Cloth Making in Uganda". unesco.org. 15 May 2010.
  9. ^
    OCLC 933520702
    .
  10. OCLC 933520702.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
    )
  11. ^ Vintage Barkcloth, December 21, 2009 at RetroRenovation.Com. Accessed June 17, 2010.
  12. ^ Vintage Las Vegas Caprice Drapery Fabric from Waverly Accessed June 17, 2010.
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