Abstract:
Cloth was a basic resource for the peoples of the Loango Coast throughout their precolonial history. It was used in
daily life for furnishings and for clothing; it was essential in landmark events such as initiation and burial ceremonies; it was
part of key transactions that cemented lineage and state alliances; and it served as a currency. The importation of European cloth from the sixteenth century began a transition from indigenous, domestically produced cloth to a reliance on
foreign cloth, but cloth maintained its significance as a key resource at all levels of society. Access to sources of cloth
and control of its distribution were closely associated with the wielding of power, whether by royal administrators, lineage
elders, religious specialists or merchant-brokers.
