Zemanek-Münster

Board game "awale" ("mankala" or "ma kpon")

Côte d'Ivoire, Dan
sold EUR 350
Size
B: 60 cm
H: ca. 12 cm
B: 23.6 inch
H: ca. 4.7 inch

Description

wood, encrusted patina, traces of usage

The African board game known variously as “mankala” or “serata”, among other names, is played throughout the entire continent (and in parts of Asia, especially in Indonesia). Among the Dan, who call it “ma kpon”, the game is exceedingly popular.

“Mankala” is one of the oldest known games to still be widely played today. Versions of the game date back to the 7th century, and evidence suggests the game existed in ancient Egypt.


Comparing literature

Fischer, Eberhard & Hans Himmelheber, The Arts of the Dan in West Africa, Zurich 1984, p. 138

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