I am not easily shocked but I was dumbfounded when a visiting researcher refused to see contemporary traditional Indonesian textiles in my collection. I think high-quality, new textiles deserve respect, or otherwise the tradition will die. Some dealers may also see such textiles as a threat. Worn by women on only the most sacred ceremonial occasions, the lavishly beaded skirts called Lawo Butu of Bajawa people of Flores are treasured clan heirlooms. A woman elder will wear a Lawo Butu in a ceremony for building traditional clan houses or the construction of an ancestral shrine . This piece was made in keeping with the traditional textiles of the Bajawan culture, and commissioned by Threads of Life. (Tied, dyed and woven by Katarina Paba - 2010. Picture of weaver by Threads of Life)