Cleveland Museum of Art

Hat

Date

early 1900s

Medium

Raffia and dye

Culture

Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kuba-style maker

Department

African Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Titled Kuba men and prominent women wear the laket , a small ornate dome-shaped hat. An essential fashion item of adult men in good social standing, it focuses special attention on the head as a significant marker of individual identity, ethnic affiliation, status, and role in society. This prestige object is secured on the crown of the head with a nine-and-a-half-inch metal pin that pierces through the hat onto a clump of hair. The laket is made from undyed raffia palm fiber that was then coiled into threads and woven. There are two examples of the laket: the plain type with the flat top, and the more elaborate type called the laket mishiing .

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