Preparing raffia fronds for mat weaving, Sabiye, 2022
Preparing raffia fronds for mat weaving, Sabiye, 2022
Description:
Owusu Alexander uses a knife to split dried raffia fronds in preparation for making a raffia palm mat. He removes the stiff rib and splits the resulting two side pieces of the frond in half, leaving a few centimeters at the base of each half unsplit. Here he folds the unsplit end in half, which allows him to easily layer the two halves when he adds them to his mat. Weaving with layered frond pieces makes a thicker and more durable mat. Sabiye, 17 July, 2022.