The Dior Rasta Scarf: Colour and Controversy in the Galliano Years

Few designers have borrowed as widely as John Galliano did at Christian Dior. In the mid-2000s, among the many sources he drew on, was the colour scheme associated with Rastafari: red, yellow and green, often with black. This merino wool scarf, finished with fringes in those colours and a metal badge carrying the Dior logo, belongs to that moment.

Galliano at Dior

Galliano, born in Gibraltar in 1960 and trained at Central Saint Martins in London, was appointed creative director of Christian Dior in 1996 and remained there until 2011. His collections ranged widely across periods and cultures, and his accessories for the house were often colourful and strongly branded.

The Rasta-themed pieces appeared in the middle of the decade. Resale and collecting records most often date them to 2004, when a Dior campaign featuring Gisele Bündchen was photographed by Nick Knight, although some pieces are attributed to 2003. We have not been able to match this scarf to a specific season, and the listing places it in the 2000s.

Borrowed colours

The colours have a particular history. Red, gold and green are associated with the Ethiopian flag and were taken up by the Rastafari movement, which emerged in Jamaica in the 1930s and spread internationally through reggae music in the 1970s. In fashion, they have been used repeatedly, often with little attention to their meaning.

In an article on the history of Rastafari imagery on the runway, i-D notes that Dior's use of the colours in the early 2000s drew criticism for adopting the movement's symbols without engagement with Jamaican culture or Rastafarian belief. That criticism is part of the object's history, and an honest account of the scarf should include it.

The object

The Archivary describes the scarf as a Christian Dior "Rasta Collection" scarf in merino wool with yellow, red and green fringes and a logo on a metal badge. It measures 178 by 20 centimetres and is recorded in very good condition. Merino is a fine, soft wool, light and warm, and well suited to a long, narrow scarf of this kind.