Plaited shield · D. R. Congo, Azande · ID: 3049774
Michel van den Dries, Gavere, Belgium
Description
rattan, wood (frame and grip board),
The weave of this shield is particularly dense and accurately worked, the large grip board on the back particularly elaborately decorated.
After the troops return, the royal prince who had ordered the raid distributed captured enemy shields, as a means of showing his benevolence. He awarded them to outstanding warriors who regarded such a shield as a mark of distinction.
The object Plaited shield with the object ID 3049774 was last part of the auction Sale 100 at April 15, 2023 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 65 achieved a sales price of EUR 3,500.
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Comparing literature
Barbier, Jean Paul & Purissima Benitez-Johannot, Shields, Munich, London, New York 2000, p. 87, ill. 26