Kirdi Pikuran Cache-Sexe or Fertility Apron, Framed

Bold zigzags, stepped like a mountain path. Red, green, yellow, black, deep blue, white.

Kirdi peoples of northern Cameroon beaded this pikuran, or cache-sexe, in the 20th century. Small beaded aprons like it were worn by women of the Mandara Mountains region and closely linked to womanhood and fertility. The chevron bands run across the panel crisp and evenly spaced. A fringe of cowrie shells hangs along the bottom edge on short beaded strands, and twisted fiber ties extend from the upper corners.

It sits in a pale wood frame about twenty-eight inches wide. Graphic enough that the gallery next door will wonder who the artist is.