Spinning was an essential activity and industry for women in the older days. It was also a hobby for wives or older women. Widows or older women who had no fixed income or could no longer do difficult daily labor like farm work spun cotton for a living.
According to Kokou Azamede from Kolonialfotografie, the women’s clothing and jewelry indicate their social status and the wealth of the family. Only wives covered their heads with the scarf. The animal skin on which the pot rests symbolized the wealth of the family and served as a placemat to keep the cotton clean.