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Rights Holder and Contact
Skinner-Jones, Ann
Description
Christianization brought to the Mewun many changes in housing, clothing and daily routine. When new converts arrived at the mission, they were given copies of the Gospels written in their own dialect and a length of 'kaliko' (material, frequently cotton print) to replace the traditional penis wrapper and grass skirt. These "gifts" acted as an induction into the European economic system and encouraged the Mewun, in order to remain properly clothed Christians, to purchase additional lengths of 'kaliko'. With this new need for European-introduced material goods, the Mewun stepped into the Western concepts of cash cropping and wage labor. Island dress style, sometimes called a "Mother Hubbard," was introduced by missionaries. Just after Independence, a few women still had sewing machines and made their own clothes. Everyone borrowed these. This photos were taken before a wave of used clothes swamped markets in Port Vila and the outer islands, discouraging sewing and, to some extent, the Mother Hubbard dress. UC San Diego Library, UC San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0175 (https://library.ucsd.edu/dc/contact)
Type
image
Identifier
ark:/20775/bb1847887b
Language
No linguistic content
Subject
Houses Clothing and dress Interior decoration Missionaries South West Bay (Malakula, Vanuatu) Pacific Islands Melanesia Oceania Wintua (Malekula, Vanuatu) Home Interiors Women at Work Wealth Indicators
Place
South West Bay (Malakula, Vanuatu) Pacific Islands Melanesia Oceania Wintua (Malekula, Vanuatu)
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