Early to mid- 20th century

Child's Rain Cape

Coir, a course fiber from the tissues around the seed of the coconut palm, is both strong and relatively waterproof. Ideal for rainwear, it is used as such by farmers in China, Japan, and Korea. In this example from southwestern China, made by the Miao ethnic minority group, groups of coir fibers are knotted to form an openwork lattice on the back, producing a hairlike front surface.