{"id":11801,"date":"2026-09-04T12:00:55","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T11:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/?p=11801"},"modified":"2026-08-28T12:48:06","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T11:48:06","slug":"cameroon-tree-bark-fabric","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/09\/04\/cameroon-tree-bark-fabric\/","title":{"rendered":"Cameroon. Tree bark fabric."},"content":{"rendered":"

Cameroon has a long tradition of making textiles from tree bark, from the most well-known fibre, raffia, which comes from a variety of palm trees and is used in making baskets and bags, to the more complex “Obom” fibre.<\/em><\/p>\n

Obom, in the Cameroonian Fang-Beti language, means “fabric made from the bark of the Aloa tree.” The Aloa tree, a soft, white wood, is widespread in the equatorial forest, particularly in Cameroon. Its bark has been the basis for the production of many fabrics and garments for generations.<\/p>\n

To this day, ancient processes are still used, a tradition passed down from generation to generation. According to tradition, the process begins with the bark being divided into sheets, which are beaten and steamed. The sheets are approximately 1-2 millimetres thick.<\/p>\n

The high quality of the resulting fibre has made Obom, a natural, high-quality fibre, the preferred fabric for the canvases of many Cameroonian artists. Many Cameroonian painters have chosen Obom canvases as the basis for their works.<\/p>\n

Maintaining the traditional method is related to the preservation of the cultural identity of peoples, which is also inherent in this fabric and the way it is made.<\/p>\n

Obom has been used to produce various garments, but it has gained popularity and variety as the garment worn during special and official functions.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Guinea-Bissau. Panu de Pinti is a symbol of national identity.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Our journey to discover traditional African textiles continues. Today, we take you to Guinea-Bissau, home of the “Panu de Pinti” (loom cloth, in Creole), a symbol of national identity and unity for the country.<\/em><\/p>\n

Panu de Pinti is a symbol of national and cultural identity for Guinea-Bissau, for its ability to unify the multiple ethnic groups and geographical areas that comprise this small country located in West Africa.<\/p>\n

The fabric is composed of long strips of cotton, carefully woven together by women on a traditional loom to form a larger cloth. The result is a weave of geometric patterns and bright colours. A single cloth can reach several meters in length.<\/p>\n

Panu de Pinti plays a prominent role in social and ritual life: it is used in wedding ceremonies, initiations, funerals, and other symbolic moments in community life. This fabric also represents social status: owning or offering a panu as a gift is considered an honour.<\/p>\n

In recent times, the panu has been rediscovered and placed at the centre of local fashion and craft initiatives, adapting it as a stylistic element. On April 10, 2025, the African Intellectual Property Organisation (OAPI) officially registered the Panu de Pinti as a cultural heritage of Guinea-Bissau, with design protection. This recognition is a significant milestone that highlights the fabric’s economic, cultural, and commercial role in local development.<\/p>\n

The tradition of panu has stood the test of time, passed down from generation to generation. The Panu de Pinti fabric is increasingly seen as a symbol of craftsmanship, culture, and unity, calling for “weaving a shared global vision for a flourishing humanity.” (Photo: CC BY-SA 4.0\/Sfs90)<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cameroon has a long tradition of making textiles from tree bark, from the most well-known fibre, raffia, which comes from a variety of palm trees and is used in making baskets and bags, to the more complex “Obom” fibre. Obom, in the Cameroonian Fang-Beti language, means “fabric made from the bark of the Aloa tree.” […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11802,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11801","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11801"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11801\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11803,"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11801\/revisions\/11803"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11802"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11801"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11801"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/combonimissionaries.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}