Dignitary wand ·  Angola, Ovimbundu · ID: 3032260

Description

wood, shiny middle brown patina, circular shaft, crowned by an anthropomorphic head with loop-shaped coiffure, min. dam., cracks, on wooden base;
staffs are multi-functional. They are called title, ritual or chief’s staff. They were, and in many areas still are, a status symbol, a distinguishing mark or tool, used by a wide range of ritual specialists, such as headman, diviners, healers, exorcists, and witch hunters, in a great variety of ways.