The pits are deep and round, lined with hardened mud and filled with dark, fermented indigo. A dyer lowers a length of white cloth into one, lifts it out and watches it turn from green to deep blue as it meets the air. At Kofar Mata, near one of the old gates of Kano, men have been dyeing cloth this way for centuries. The pits are among the oldest in Africa, and they are still in use.
History, indigo and the pits
Tradition dates the Kofar Mata pits to the late fifteenth century. Kano’s dyeing industry grew alongside its role as a major trading city. The dye comes from indigo plants, mixed with ash, potash and other ingredients and left to ferment in the pits. The pits can be several metres deep. Families inherit them and pass the knowledge of dyeing from generation to generation.
Cloth is dipped repeatedly to achieve different shades of blue. Patterns can be created by tying or folding the cloth before dyeing.
Kano cloth, decline and tourism
Kano-dyed cloth was traded across West Africa and the Sahara. The Tuareg, known as the “blue men”, wore indigo cloth that partly came from Hausa dyers. After dyeing, some cloth is beaten to give it a shiny finish, a technique valued by buyers. Synthetic dyes and imported textiles reduced demand for traditional indigo, and the number of dyers has fallen.
The pits attract visitors who come to watch the dyers at work and buy cloth. Cultural groups have called for support to preserve the pits as a heritage site. Similar traditions exist in Abeokuta, where adire cloth is made, and in Mali.
Skill, visiting and buying cloth
Dyers learn through long apprenticeship, judging colour by eye and experience. Visitors should ask permission before photographing the dyers. At Kofar Mata, dyeing has traditionally been done by men, who work long hours bending over the pits. Their hands and arms are often stained blue, a sign of their trade that they wear with pride.
Visitors can buy dyed cloth directly from the dyers. Kano has modern markets and factories. At Kofar Mata, men still lift cloth from pits of indigo and watch it turn blue in the air, as their ancestors did five centuries ago.
