This is one of 702 pieces of cloth given to Manchester Art Gallery in 1954 by Charles Sixsmith, Managing Director of Bentinck Mill in Farnworth, Bolton. They were made for export to West Africa. From the 1700s to the mid-20th century there was a booming textile trade between Manchester and West Africa. 

This object was one of two selected for our Collections Chat on 11 June, and the full collection is also discussed in this article, published in the Big Issue North in August.