Glass beads were originally created to ease the passage of European explorers across the African continent. As most African cultures have long histories of crafting and adornment with beads made from wood, bone and shell, the introduction of glass as a bead material was widely and rapidly received....
Africa masks can be traced back to well past Paleolithic times. These art objects were, and are still made of various materials; including leather, metal, fabric and various types of wood. Old African masks predating the colonization of the continent, were more than just an artifact or piece of art work to be hung on...
“Nea Onnim” (pictured on the right) is just one of many symbols created by the Asanti people of Ghana. These symbols are called Adinkra; they are named so after Nana Adinkra, a defeated king of Gyaman which was a former kingdom within the West African country of Cote d'Ivo...
Mbole translates to “the people of downstream" which is appropriate considering this tribe originally inhabited a long strip beside the banks of the Congo River. They now currently reside in the equatorial forest on both sides of the Lomami River, located in the Tshopo Province. The Mbole is a patriarchal society con...
The Mangbetu People are north eastern inhabitants of the Republic of Congo. What really sets this large subgroup of Congolese apart from their neighbors is the elongated shape of their head, a custom known to the natives as “Lipombo”. This look is achieved through the process of tightly weaving cords around a child’s...
