A South African North Nguni/Tsonga Carved Wooden Headrest
A South African North Nguni/Tsonga Carved Wooden Headrest
19th Century
Size: 13cm high, 10cm deep, 18.5cm wide – 5 ins high, 4 ins deep, 7¼ ins wide
19th Century
Size: 13cm high, 10cm deep, 18.5cm wide – 5 ins high, 4 ins deep, 7¼ ins wide
Headrests ‘the support of dreams’ have a long history and tradition of use in Africa. They have been found in the tombs of the ancient Egyptians and in the Bandia Gara cliffs in Mali where tellem examples were found dating to the 11th and 13th centuries A.D. Early European travellers reported their use : Loyer commenting on the Assini people of the Gold Coast in 1701 states ‘they have only a few stools about a foot high which in the night serve them for pillows’.
A South African North Nguni/Tsonga Carved Wooden Headrest
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