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Source Description
A lamba is an untailored textile worn by all ages, classes, and genders across much of Madagascar. This is an example of a woman’s garment made after Queen Ranavalona II made Christianity the state religion of the Merina Kingdom. Soon after, all-white lamba became popular for both Sunday church and daily wear. <em>Fotsy</em> is white in the Malagasy language. Indicating its owner’s worldliness, the white-on-white patterns alluded to fashionable imported textiles with damask patterns.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
705328
label
One of a pair of shawls (Lamba Landy Fotsy)
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
705328
contentType
object
title
One of a pair of shawls (Lamba Landy Fotsy)
description
A lamba is an untailored textile worn by all ages, classes, and genders across much of Madagascar. This is an example of a woman’s garment made after Queen Ranavalona II made Christianity the state religion of the Merina Kingdom. Soon after, all-white lamba became popular for both Sunday church and daily wear. <em>Fotsy</em> is white in the Malagasy language. Indicating its owner’s worldliness, the white-on-white patterns alluded to fashionable imported textiles with damask patterns.
date
1900s
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Textile
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Part 1: 74 x 211 cm (29 1/8 x 83 1/16 in.)
cul
Africa, East Africa, Madagascar
accession
2025.273.1
Source extras
tec
Silk (Bombyx mori and Borocera cajani)
tombstone
One of a pair of shawls (Lamba Landy Fotsy), 1900s. Africa, East Africa, Madagascar. Silk (Bombyx mori and Borocera cajani); part 1: 74 x 211 cm (29 1/8 x 83 1/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Sundry Art - African Art Fund and Textile Fund, 2025.273.1
collection
African Art
didYouKnow
Invented in the mid-1800s, shawls like this were popular until about 2000.
creditline
Sundry Art - African Art Fund and Textile Fund
updatedAt
2026-06-04 11:04:10.525000
sourceId
705328
dept
African Art
coll
African Art
med
Silk (Bombyx mori and Borocera cajani)
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
4d3c06caf7418c1d