Extremely Rare Sudanese Mahdist Patched Jibbeh

Surely one of the most iconic garments in military history, that of the followers of Mohammed Ahmad, the self-declared al-Mahdi of the Sudan Mahdist War of the 1880's and 1890's. The patched jibbeh, emblematic of virtuous poverty, was the 'uniform' of the Mahdist. While it is known that as the Mahdiyya state grew, these jibbehs were ultimately manufactured in factories, this example bears refinements in construction and detail which suggest it was perhaps that of an individual of rank, such as an Amir, rather than a lower status Ansar. The garment body is complete, and though some of the patches in particuler show distress, the jibbeh overall is fundamentally sound, and will respond well to conservation. Examples exist in major military museums, and the collections of some stately homes, though examples effectively never come on the open market. This is an exceptionally rare opportunity to acquire such a distinctive relic of the Anglo-Sudan War of 1881 to the final demise of the Mahdiyya at Omdurman in 1898.

Code: 15278