Hand-Woven Placemat — Zuva (Set of 2)

Handwoven raffia and twisted fibre placemats, made in Zimbabwe.

Zuva. Sun. The name is earned in every coil. Beginning at the centre in deep ochre-brown and radiating outward through warm terracotta, this placemat is woven using the same coil technique passed between generations of Southern African basket makers, a tradition in which the spiral is never incidental. It holds meaning. It holds memory. Here, it holds your table.

The woven disc is bordered by a crown of dark, rope-twisted fibre loops, each folded and anchored in a repeating formation that replicates the sun's rays in tactile, three-dimensional relief. The interplay between the tight, grounded coil-weave of the centre and the open, breathing rhythm of the looped border is a study in contrast that any maker from this tradition would recognise immediately structure and openness, held together.

These are not placemats that disappear beneath a plate. They are objects that set the tone of a table before anything else is laid upon it.

Supplied as a set of two.