Pair of Zoomorphic Fetishes
Zigua / Pare, Tanzania
Terracotta, leather, textile, ritual accumulation
Early 20th century

Northeast Tanzania is on the frontier with Kenya, on the shores of the Indian Ocean, and has a strong cultural identity. Characteristically, clay and wooden figures from northeastern Tanzania are covered with a piece of cloth or leather soaked with a liquid substance that gives them a mummified look. These figures are also hollowed or have cavities so that they can hold magical substances. The clay figurines are used in initiation ceremonies into secret societies and by healers during curing rites (Bacquart, The Tribal Arts of Africa, 1998; Schaedler, Earth and Ore, 1997).

5.25, 5.75 in :: 13.5, 14.5 cm

InventoryID #13-1621

SOLD