Rare large battle shield
Description
buffalo skin, kaolin, base
This unusual type of shield is one of the largest African leather shields.
The shield is curved around a vertical central axis so that it offers the fighter’s body almost all-round protection. When at rest, the shields were leaned against the feet, placed vertically on the ground.
The shield is elaborately decorated. The asymmetrical patterns were created by shaving out the short-haired buffalo hide in places. Linear patterns were driven into the thick leather, and elsewhere shapes were emphasised by incised lines. The carrying pole consists of a forked piece of wood that was fixed with leather straps. In addition, a carrying cord made of plant fibre.
The shield was carried by the Luo, an association of many small tribal groups living on the eastern shore of Lake Victoria in western Kenya and Tanzania. An obsolete name for the Nilotic groups is Kavirondo.