Zemanek-Münster

Miniature shield

Ethiopia, Oromo
not available anymore
Provenance
Old German Colonial Collection
Size
D: 23 cm
D: 9.1 inch

Description

leather, conical vaulted form, two bronze studs influenced by Arabian sources holding the handle at the back, min. dam., traces of usage;
of unusual design, the shield was carried by the Oromo (Galla), in southern Ethiopia, as well as by the peoples of Somalia. Similar miniature versions, which were probably made on a lathe, were also used in ritual knife fights in the bordering area of southern Arabia across from the East Horn of Africa.


Comparing literature

Zirngibl, Manfred A. & Dieter Plaschke, Afrikanische Schilde, München 1992, p. 58, ill. 42

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