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Most recents (17)
19th century, Angola and D.R.C
chairs made by chokwe sculptors, ornamented with various figures
-brooklynmuseum
-ethnologies museum berlin
#randomxt
chairs made by chokwe sculptors, ornamented with various figures
-brooklynmuseum
-ethnologies museum berlin
#randomxt
the chokwe emerged in the mid 19th century as "one of the most dynamic economic forces in central africa"
initially a periphery group of the Luba kingdom, they grew wealthy exporting various commodities; ivory (their traditional item of trade) as well as rubber and wax
initially a periphery group of the Luba kingdom, they grew wealthy exporting various commodities; ivory (their traditional item of trade) as well as rubber and wax
these chairs are were influenced by the imported ones circulating in the region from the 17th century but took on a more distinctive chokwe style
including miniature genre scenes of ancestral, titled, and ordinary chokwe figures, as well as the occasional foreigner
including miniature genre scenes of ancestral, titled, and ordinary chokwe figures, as well as the occasional foreigner
3rd-10th century
equestrian figure of a high-ranking rider from the little-known Bura civilization, south-east of the city of Gao in Niger
-Universite Abdou Moumouni de Niamey
#randomxt
equestrian figure of a high-ranking rider from the little-known Bura civilization, south-east of the city of Gao in Niger
-Universite Abdou Moumouni de Niamey
#randomxt
robin law argued convincingly against the use of mounted soldiers in African armies before the introduction of all three horse-equipment; bridles (with bits), stirrups and saddles (before 1200s)
but he notes that the bridles were in used early
horsebits from the Bura 300-1000AD
but he notes that the bridles were in used early
horsebits from the Bura 300-1000AD
its unfortunate that the original sculpture, which would have been just under a meter tall, isn't well preserved
Excavation of Bura-Asinda-Sikka, Niger, 1985
Excavation of Bura-Asinda-Sikka, Niger, 1985
an unusual portuguese figure from 18th century benin
he is given edo attributes like
-larger than life proportion of the head
-large eyes with outlined pupils
-a patterned hat
-an unusual sitting posture
despite his european features, he is unlike his peers below 👇🏾
#randomxt
he is given edo attributes like
-larger than life proportion of the head
-large eyes with outlined pupils
-a patterned hat
-an unusual sitting posture
despite his european features, he is unlike his peers below 👇🏾
#randomxt
his head is enlarged and has heavily outlined eyes & pupils <accentuated gaze> that are typical of benin art, but quite unlike benin's depictions of Portuguese with small eyes and proportionate heads
although he has the typical rendering of European facial features (nose & beard)
although he has the typical rendering of European facial features (nose & beard)
his unique patterned hat with a knotted rope around its rim (rather than the usual helmet shown on Portuguese figures 👇🏾) and the seating posture (reserved for edo dignitaries versus the usually standing/crouching portuguese) may indicate his higher status from his peers
"The Meroitic empire, Queen Amanirenas and the Candaces of Kush: power and gender in an ancient African state"
On the enigma of Meroe ...
references thread with screenshots
isaacsamuel.substack.com/p/the-meroitic…
On the enigma of Meroe ...
references thread with screenshots
isaacsamuel.substack.com/p/the-meroitic…
1- list of monarchs of kush
2- Meroe as a city of violent contest and capital of the Napatan-era kings
2- Meroe as a city of violent contest and capital of the Napatan-era kings
3- the emergence of the meroitic dynasty
4-the emergence of the meroitic script and the circumstances that brought Kush's first female sovereign to power
4-the emergence of the meroitic script and the circumstances that brought Kush's first female sovereign to power
late 19th cent.
embroidered cotton tunics from the kingdom of dahomey, republic of Benin
-quai branly
#randomxt
"Dahomey cloth woven of both cotton and raffia constituted the finest weaving, both from the point of
view of technical excellence and of design"
embroidered cotton tunics from the kingdom of dahomey, republic of Benin
-quai branly
#randomxt
"Dahomey cloth woven of both cotton and raffia constituted the finest weaving, both from the point of
view of technical excellence and of design"
Weavers were mostly male while dyers and spinners were women, they included both Fon weavers and Yoruba immigrants, they used vertical and ground looms, embroidering was dominated by yoruba weavers who served both the domestic market and exported large amounts of cloth to brazil
Dyeing was done using indigo and potash, other colors such as red and black were achieved using sorghum stalks, imported silks were also woven into cloths
dahomey weavers incorporated styles from the Muslim north, the Akan to its west, the Yorubalands to its east
dahomey weavers incorporated styles from the Muslim north, the Akan to its west, the Yorubalands to its east
1858AD
Ut̪end̪i wa Mwana Kupona (The Poem of Mwana
Kupona’)
written by Mwana Kupona, a swahili woman from lamu, Kenya
written for the education of her daughter; Mwana Hashima binti Sheikh, on how to be an upstanding woman in swahili society
#randomxt
-Berlin State Library
Ut̪end̪i wa Mwana Kupona (The Poem of Mwana
Kupona’)
written by Mwana Kupona, a swahili woman from lamu, Kenya
written for the education of her daughter; Mwana Hashima binti Sheikh, on how to be an upstanding woman in swahili society
#randomxt
-Berlin State Library
Mwana Kupona was the wife of Bwana Mat̪aka, the ruler of Siyu
she was one of several notable swahili female scholars
and was a contemporary of the famous 19th century west-african poetess, Nana Asmau
she was one of several notable swahili female scholars
and was a contemporary of the famous 19th century west-african poetess, Nana Asmau
this 102-verse poem is still recited by both young and newlywed swahili women in east africa
and is one among the dozens of extant poems of the "utendi genre" from the 16th-19th century -which made up the bulk of "secular" swahili literature
and is one among the dozens of extant poems of the "utendi genre" from the 16th-19th century -which made up the bulk of "secular" swahili literature
664BC "Dream Stela" of Kushite king/Egyptian pharaoh Tanwetamani
-nubian museum
#randomxt
The stela narrates Tanwetamani's "restoration of the double kingdom of Kush and Egypt from the condition of chaos " after he'd defeated Necho I and the delta & sais chiefs in 664BC
-nubian museum
#randomxt
The stela narrates Tanwetamani's "restoration of the double kingdom of Kush and Egypt from the condition of chaos " after he'd defeated Necho I and the delta & sais chiefs in 664BC
Originally erected in the Jebel Barkal temple in sudan and written in hieroglyphic by a scribe from napata, this dream stela emulated the language of Piye's 'Great Triumphal Stela (Piye was a kushite king who conquered Egypt and established the 25th dynasty in 760BC)
But this fragile peace was short-lived as the Assyrians under Assurbanipal invaded Egypt again in 664 and sacked Thebes
upper Egypt remained loyal to Tanwetamani until 656BC when Psamtik's daughter was adopted as the "God's wife of Amun" elect by the reigning Kushite princes thus
upper Egypt remained loyal to Tanwetamani until 656BC when Psamtik's daughter was adopted as the "God's wife of Amun" elect by the reigning Kushite princes thus
1882 AD
Wathiqa ilā amir Kanū fi amr al-mahdī (treatise on the exodus) by Maryam Bint Shehu in sokoto, Nigeria
-sokoto state history bureau
#randomxt
Maryam was a prominent scholar & lecturer from the sokoto empire; one of several highly literate women in 19th cent. west africa
Wathiqa ilā amir Kanū fi amr al-mahdī (treatise on the exodus) by Maryam Bint Shehu in sokoto, Nigeria
-sokoto state history bureau
#randomxt
Maryam was a prominent scholar & lecturer from the sokoto empire; one of several highly literate women in 19th cent. west africa
in this letter to her son Muhammad Bello b. Ibrahim Dabo; ruler of kano (then province of sokoto), Maryam sought to reassure and calm the people of kano that the rumors of the Mahdi's arrival were false inorder to stem the exodus of faithfuls moving east (to sudan)
This was a time of eschatological anxieties in west africa in anticipation of the prophetic traditions of the 12th caliph and the mahdi leading to a millenarian turmoil
a nubian named Muhammad Ahmad had declared himself the mahdi in 1881 and freed sudan from the ottoman turks
a nubian named Muhammad Ahmad had declared himself the mahdi in 1881 and freed sudan from the ottoman turks
Folios from three of the chronicles of the history of kano, nigeria
1650AD, Asl al-Wanqariyin (wangara chronicle)
1880AD, Tarikh al-Musamma (kano chronicle) written by the scribe Dan Rimi Malam Barka
19th cent., Wakar Bagauda (Song of Bagauda)
-jos museum, nigeria
#randomxt
1650AD, Asl al-Wanqariyin (wangara chronicle)
1880AD, Tarikh al-Musamma (kano chronicle) written by the scribe Dan Rimi Malam Barka
19th cent., Wakar Bagauda (Song of Bagauda)
-jos museum, nigeria
#randomxt
Kano was one of the commercial capitals of the hausalands and one of the largest cities in 19th cent. west africa
Malam Barka was a powerful slave official originally from wadai (in chad) during the reign of sarkin kano Muhammad Bello (1882–93) he wrote
Malam Barka was a powerful slave official originally from wadai (in chad) during the reign of sarkin kano Muhammad Bello (1882–93) he wrote
the kano chronicle using several oral history sources during the political upheaval after bello's death
The anonymously authored Wakar Bagauda may also be attributed to him
The anonymously authored Wakar Bagauda may also be attributed to him
1566AD
Letter from Antonio Vieira to king Henry of Portugal reporting on copper in Kongo
written from Sao Tome
-National Archive of Torre do Tombo
#randomxt
Antonio was a powerful Mwisikongo noble and diplomat that served as the Manikongo's factor at Lisbon under 1/3
Letter from Antonio Vieira to king Henry of Portugal reporting on copper in Kongo
written from Sao Tome
-National Archive of Torre do Tombo
#randomxt
Antonio was a powerful Mwisikongo noble and diplomat that served as the Manikongo's factor at Lisbon under 1/3
both kings Afonso and Pedro later acting as Kongo's ambassador to Rome in 1595 under king Alvaro later marrying to Margarita da Silva (a Portuguese noble woman and Queen Catharina 's lady in waiting)
He was instrumental during the various successions of kings of the era,
He was instrumental during the various successions of kings of the era,
ecclesiastical issues between kongo, lisbon, sao tome and Rome and the trade between Portugal and Kongo of which copper was one of Kongo's biggest exports during the early stages of the Atlantic trade esp after Kongo restricted slave exports in the late 16th and early 17th cent.
early 14th cent. AD
Ife terracotta and copper-alloy artworks
-Head of a king with an 'akoko' crown
-arm of a ruler/priest with leaf motif
-beaded figure of a king with an oro cap
-bronze bowl with intricate cord patterning
#randomxt
-Berlin state museum, germany
-NCMM, nigeria
Ife terracotta and copper-alloy artworks
-Head of a king with an 'akoko' crown
-arm of a ruler/priest with leaf motif
-beaded figure of a king with an oro cap
-bronze bowl with intricate cord patterning
#randomxt
-Berlin state museum, germany
-NCMM, nigeria
"Ife was an African civilization whose art, inventiveness and ritual primacy developed with little foreign influence: contrary to the misconception where Muslim empires of West-Africa like Mali were transmitters of high culture into the southerly regions"
uncensoredopinion.co.za/the-ancient-ci…
uncensoredopinion.co.za/the-ancient-ci…
reading...
Art in Ancient Ife, Birthplace of the Yoruba
Suzanne Preston Blier
scholar.harvard.edu/files/blier/fi…
Art and Risk in Ancient Yoruba: Ife History, Power, and Identity, ca. 1300
By Suzanne Preston Blier
books.google.com/books/about/Ar…
Art in Ancient Ife, Birthplace of the Yoruba
Suzanne Preston Blier
scholar.harvard.edu/files/blier/fi…
Art and Risk in Ancient Yoruba: Ife History, Power, and Identity, ca. 1300
By Suzanne Preston Blier
books.google.com/books/about/Ar…
1731 AD
astronomical manuscript titled "Kitâb fî al-Falak" (on the knowledge of the stars) written in gao, mali
Mamma Haidara Library
#randomxt
gao was the capital of several west-african kingdoms starting in the 9th cent.
astronomical manuscript titled "Kitâb fî al-Falak" (on the knowledge of the stars) written in gao, mali
Mamma Haidara Library
#randomxt
gao was the capital of several west-african kingdoms starting in the 9th cent.
@alykhansatchu @JAJafri @SGOKIdehistorie @africaupdates @pinkykhoabane @ChristineQunta @HausaTranslator but it flourished mostly under songhai in the 16th century an understanding of the stars was essential for navigation through the desert and calculating the seasons
@alykhansatchu @JAJafri @SGOKIdehistorie @africaupdates @pinkykhoabane @ChristineQunta @HausaTranslator The Hidden Treasures of Timbuktu: Historic City of Islamic Africa
John O. Hunwick, Alida Jay Boye
books.google.fr/books/about/Th…
John O. Hunwick, Alida Jay Boye
books.google.fr/books/about/Th…
akan jewellery, ghana
19th cent. gold rings
-one with an umbrella, stool and sword, the other with three umbrellas and two with animal motifs
-houston museum of fine arts
#randomxt
the asante were by then the only akan state on the gold coast controlling an empire covering
19th cent. gold rings
-one with an umbrella, stool and sword, the other with three umbrellas and two with animal motifs
-houston museum of fine arts
#randomxt
the asante were by then the only akan state on the gold coast controlling an empire covering
most of modern ghana and the ivory coast
such gold jewellery was made in the tributary state dagbon using the lost-wax method
the rings worn by both men and women, elites and commoners typically several at a time
akan gold-casting tradition originated from the "western sudan"
such gold jewellery was made in the tributary state dagbon using the lost-wax method
the rings worn by both men and women, elites and commoners typically several at a time
akan gold-casting tradition originated from the "western sudan"
STUDIES IN AKAN GOLDWEIGHTS (1) THE ORIGIN OF THE GOLDWEIGHT SYSTEM
Timothy F. Garrard
jstor.org/stable/4140580…
Forests of Gold: Essays on the Akan and the Kingdom of Asante
Ivor Wilks
books.google.co.ug/books/about/Fo…
Timothy F. Garrard
jstor.org/stable/4140580…
Forests of Gold: Essays on the Akan and the Kingdom of Asante
Ivor Wilks
books.google.co.ug/books/about/Fo…
1664 folio from Tārīkh al-Fattāsh <chronicle of the researcher> ; a detailed account of the history of the west-african empires from the rise of ghana through mali to the fall of songhai spanning the 4th to 16th centuries
#randomxt
Mamma Haidara Memorial Library, mali
the 1/3
#randomxt
Mamma Haidara Memorial Library, mali
the 1/3
chronicle was written by Ibn al-Mukhtar in the mid 17th cent. which, along with al-Sadi 1656 Tarikh al-Sudan "Notice historique" 1657/69 form the Tarikh's genre ;some of the most widely used primary sources of west-african history written by west africans living in west-africa
reading;
The Meanings of Timbuktu
Shamil Jeppie, Souleymane Bachir Diagne
books.google.co.ug/books/about/Th…
African Dominion: A New History of Empire in Early and Medieval West Africa
Michael Gomez
books.google.co.ug/books/about/Af…
thread on west-africa's ,manuscripts
The Meanings of Timbuktu
Shamil Jeppie, Souleymane Bachir Diagne
books.google.co.ug/books/about/Th…
African Dominion: A New History of Empire in Early and Medieval West Africa
Michael Gomez
books.google.co.ug/books/about/Af…
thread on west-africa's ,manuscripts
16th cent. brass plaque depicting edo priests with offerings -benin city, nigeria
#randomxt
-britishmuseum
benin court etiquette called for elaborate containers for things other than liquids such as kola nuts
their spiral hair suggests a priestly role and they were called 1/2
#randomxt
-britishmuseum
benin court etiquette called for elaborate containers for things other than liquids such as kola nuts
their spiral hair suggests a priestly role and they were called 1/2
'emuru' -specialists who care for the iru -ritual brass vessels filled with protective substances used in palace ceremonies
see more plaque under the hashtag
see more plaque under the hashtag
this book is actually available free online in pdf form but i wont link it here and although its abit dated; its well written
Royal Art of Benin: The Perls Collection in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Kate Ezra Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.)
books.google.co.ug/books/about/Ro…
Royal Art of Benin: The Perls Collection in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Kate Ezra Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.)
books.google.co.ug/books/about/Ro…
17th cent. Fasilides' pool
a large rectangular bath built about the same time as Fasilides castle by the same gondarine emperor in the fortified royal city of gondar whose architecture is late axumite-mughal blend
now used mostly for the annual timket celebration
#historyxt
a large rectangular bath built about the same time as Fasilides castle by the same gondarine emperor in the fortified royal city of gondar whose architecture is late axumite-mughal blend
now used mostly for the annual timket celebration
#historyxt
The Archaeology of the Jesuit Missions in Ethiopia (1557–1632)
Victor M. Fernández, Jorge De Torres, Andreu Martínez d'Alòs-Moner, Carlos Cañete
books.google.co.ug/books?id=LtMuD…
The Ethiopian Borderlands:
Richard Pankhurst,
books.google.co.ug/books?id=zpYBD…
Victor M. Fernández, Jorge De Torres, Andreu Martínez d'Alòs-Moner, Carlos Cañete
books.google.co.ug/books?id=LtMuD…
The Ethiopian Borderlands:
Richard Pankhurst,
books.google.co.ug/books?id=zpYBD…
a few churches from the tigray region of the late & post aksumite era <after 800CE>
see interiors in next tweet
#historyxt
wukro chirkos
Mikael Imba
Abreha we Atsehba
Maryam korkor
many contain paintings from the 13th century-
some were damaged during the abyssinia-adal wars
see interiors in next tweet
#historyxt
wukro chirkos
Mikael Imba
Abreha we Atsehba
Maryam korkor
many contain paintings from the 13th century-
some were damaged during the abyssinia-adal wars
16th century Memorial Brass Head of queen Idia
-Ethnological Museum, Berlin
#randomxt
-benin's first queen mother (iyoba) was a renown military strategist, administrator and one of africa's greatest (female) sovereigns personally involved in benin's many wars of conquest esp..
-Ethnological Museum, Berlin
#randomxt
-benin's first queen mother (iyoba) was a renown military strategist, administrator and one of africa's greatest (female) sovereigns personally involved in benin's many wars of conquest esp..
in the civil war against Arhuaran <then the rival claimant to the throne>, Esigie's brother and the igala both of whom she defeated later becoming one of the top administrators in the empire -then at its greatest extent
she's featured prominently in benin royal arts
she's featured prominently in benin royal arts
profile;
Iyoba Idia: The Hidden Oba of Benin
rainqueensofafrica.com/2012/11/iyoba-…
A popular history of Benin: the rise and fall of a mighty forest kingdom
Peter M. Roese, D. M. Bondarenko
books.google.co.ug/books/about/A_…
The military system of Benin Kingdom c. 1440-1897
academia.edu/31310702/The_m…
Iyoba Idia: The Hidden Oba of Benin
rainqueensofafrica.com/2012/11/iyoba-…
A popular history of Benin: the rise and fall of a mighty forest kingdom
Peter M. Roese, D. M. Bondarenko
books.google.co.ug/books/about/A_…
The military system of Benin Kingdom c. 1440-1897
academia.edu/31310702/The_m…
