Shield · D. R. Congo, Azande · ID: 3034625
sold
EUR 2,600
Provenance
collected in situ by Charles Smets, who participated in the American Museum’s Congo Expedition of 1909-15. In 1990 an exhibition was developed with hundreds of photographs of objects from this expedition, along with many fine archival photographs taken by Herbert Lang on the expedition. The publication “African Reflections” by Enid Schildkrout and Curtis Keim was published as companion to this exhibition. It traces the art history of northeastern Zaire from before the first encounters with Europeans in the 1870’s to the present.Size
H: 99,5 cm
B: 43 cm
H: 39.2 inch
B: 16.9 inch
Description
basketry with wooden frame and grip board, dark brown ground with patterns in light-beige, in good condition;
shield patterns identified shield bearers during battle and owners were expected to maintain the “dignity” of their shields. 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. It is identical in pattern to an example in rhe Royal Museum of the Army and Military History in Brussels (no. 507-699).
Comparing literature
Barbier, Jean Paul, Benitez-Johannot, P., Shields, München, London, New York 2000, p. 86, ill. 26