Pair of dance figures
Walter Hekster, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Description
wood, spotted brown patina, remains of black and reddish brown paint at the heads of the male/resp. the female figure, traces of red paint, corpulent bodies with round forms and movable arms (fixed by metal tags), drilled eyes and gap-like mouth, slightly dam., minor missing parts (feet, thumb and upper arm of the female right hand side), cracks, paint rubbed off, sacrificial traces;
traditionally used at initiation ceremonies. According to A. Bessire they appear in Sukuma dance competitions as well. Two groups (“bogobogobo” and “bakomyalume”) perform simultaneously to compete for a larger audience. Large and small scale dance figures are employed. The figures are called “mabinda” or “maleba”, terms which seem to refer not only to a specific taxonomy of objects, but rather to a more general notion of attracting the crowd, respectively to describe the objects and paraphernalia associated with the dance.