Prestige shield "tafa gašša" · Ethiopia, Amhara · ID: 3051146
sold
EUR 1,000
Provenance
Erwin & Susanne Melchardt, Vienna, AustriaSize
D: 39 cm
D: 15.4 inch
Description
leather, velvet, finely chiselled metal fittings,
Initially used purely as military equipment, these shields became more and more elaborately decorated in the course of time and were transformed into purely decorative objects of imperial dignitaries and particularly deserving warriors.
They were even used back in the time of Emperor Menelik II (1889 - 1913) as valuable presents for the visitors of high rank or for the heads of state.