Wrapping Cloth for Bed Clothes

Ibulbo, also called geumbo, is a big, wide cloth used to wrap bedsheets for storage. Bedsheets were wrapped to prevent dust from collecting or to keep them clean. It was made using colors such as lapis lazuli or black with cotton and burlap to ensure that dirt would not collect easily or be as noticeable. Bedsheets wrapped in cloth were usually stored in a chest with a hinged front flap. The black wrapping cloth shown here is made of three pieces of cotton cloth sewn together, with long strings tied to three corners.