Antique Africa Arts? They still exist.

Antique Africa Arts? They still exist.

Snuff mortar - tesa ya ma kanya
Unidentified Chokwe artist, 18th Century
Democratic Republic of Congo or Angola
(sourced in Namibia - see PR document)
Material: Wood
Size in cm: 33 x 13 x 11
Weight: 1.2kg

Tobacco became an imported good in Africa and mortars like these where a luxury product (also famously as tesa ya ma kanya) with which tobacco was refined, thus were often a high prestige goods. This figure shows a kneeling woman who holds her breast, as a symbolic sign for the preservation of the kingdom. This mortar registers high age, as well as wear of the figure.

The Chokwe culture ran by a time of the certain enlargement of their kingdom, during the second half of the 19th century, progressively extending of her territory in the north till 1880 or in 1890. They reached the Shaba, Kasai and Kwilu region which today is known as a democratic republic of Congo. The face of this figure divides resemblances to pieces which into the Minungu region (which were collected border of Angola and the Congo). It proves the impression that this piece from this region there must come, or at least his artist, pre or during the expansion phase.For more information on this find and the geographical location of the find please look at the PR and Pressinformation download section located on the middle right section of the eAfri Blog.For german press releases click below.

German Press release 1 (prcenter.de)
German Press release 2 (openpr.de)
German Press release 3 (presseanzeiger.de)