Anthropomorphic tobacco pipe "dak"

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Description

bamboo shaft, elaborate terracotta pipes head in the shape of an animal with big open snout, decorated with delicate incised ornaments, fixed by animal skin and twisted cord material, small bowl-shaped gourd with mouth piece on top;
the Shilluk use two types of “dak”, the “dangduong” and the “dangthen”. The former is kept within the family enclosure, while the latter is more commonly used in public. But the two types are not structurally different. The skin made mouth piece is fitted around a gourd plant, filled with a filtering material called “anywön”. It is made from a plant known as “thitho”, treated in a special way that makes the fibres very soft. It is changed when it becomes thick and bitter with nicotine.

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Comparing literature

Mildner-Spindler, Roma, Rund um Tabakspfeifen, Berlin 1992, p. 60, ill. 37

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