Bridal badges "omakipa" · Namibia · ID: 3036125
sold
EUR 400
Provenance
Jürgen & Gisela Büse, Rheinbreitbach, GermanySize
D: 5,5 cm - 6 cm
D: 2.2 inch - 2.4 inch
Description
three pieces, ivory, natural grains, round forms with incised patterns at the rim, one badge with remains of red pigments, one with remains of a leather band;
the number of “omakipa” badges a young man gave his fiancée depended on his wealth and the number of cows he owned. Even the incised patterns had a special meaning. These “marriage insignia” were fixed to a leather strip the bride wore around her hips.