Tribal Art

Utilitarian objects in African art
br- Resting on three oblique feet this zoomorphic-looking African neck support symbolically evoking cattle has an oblong seat at the concave centre. Oiled brown patina. This prestigious object was intended to preserve the complex headdress of its owner, also indicated its social status, but was also used as a stool. Some, with handles, accompanied individuals on their travels. Belt replaced by one of its owners.
Dealy was collected about these nomadic inhabitants of southern Sudan. Some of these East African tribes have been virtually exterminated by the inter-tribal wars and the Islamic slave trade. Organized around livestock farming, these ethnic groups considered the possession of cows and herds, and therefore of milk and meat, as a mark of social prestige. "The Tribal Art of Black Africa" J.B.BACQUART