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Central and Southern African Tribal Art

 

 

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African Meat Trays - Meat Platters

 

 

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Swazi Meat Platter - 20th Century

 

"Umcwembe"

 

 

    

 

Swazi wooden meat trays are known for their exceptional symmetry.

Example (A) is nearly perfectly round.

 

 

 

This example (B), is larger and a powerful example of this Swazi simplistic form.

 

 

 

Example (B)

 

Four legs kept the meat platters raised from the surface.

Visually appealing lugs were added to either side of Swazi bowls so that they might be hung when not in use.

 

 

 

Example (C) emits the feeling of Fijian kava bowls, while at the same time sports the longest legs known to us on Swazi meat platters.

 

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The small carved center indentation on the underside of Swazi bowls are tribally reflective of Swazi fighting sticks. Their knobkerries have two, one top - one bottom, apparently meant to stop fresh wood from splitting.

 

 

 

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Example (D) displays well from either side if its display mounting. The underside of Swazi meat trays were scorched to ward off and prevent insect damage. The singeing process is known as pokerwork.

 

 

 

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Enjoy a second "ET" lookalike (E).

 

 

 

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Example (F), of oval form.

 

 

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Example (G) is large, symmetrically circular and has squared off handles like "C".

 

 

       

 

Example (H)

 

Both the Zulu and Swazi produced double meat trays. Our example has a dark patina of use.

 

 

       

 

Example (I)

 

This exceptionally rare example had five bowls, a number which would have been used for various relishes. The raised design pattern on it's underside suggests a Zulu origin, but it was collected in Swaziland from a Swazi. As dry patina of  age is retained. 

 

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south african south africa africa franschhoek artifact southern africa southern african tribal art african art artefact vintage artefacts  ken karner artifacts

 

south african artifact southern africa southern african

 

 

Zulu / Tsonga - Meat Platters

 

"Umcwembe"

 

 

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The Tsonga living in South Africa and Mozambique also made use of meat trays. This small, fine example (A) was rediscovered in England.

 

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We identify this example (B) as Tsonga, in that a soap stone example in the collection of Karel Nel, was collected from a Tsonga area. The Nel example displays somewhat identical attributes and proportions.

 

     

 

Collection Karel Nel

 

 

 

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This small meat tray (C) may well be Zulu. Both the Tsonga and Zulu scorched chevron patterns onto headrests, food bowls and other items, rather then all over.

 

 

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This excellent example was early collected, then  rediscovered in an Australian context, where it might well have traveled to on a steamship. It's original symmetric pokerwork patterns have been darkened by years of  further usage. 

 

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Nyoro Meat Trays

 

Uganda

 

 

Nyoro chiefs and headmen used wooden bowls to serve meat.

 

 

Tribal Crafts of Uganda - Margaret Trowell - Plate 18 - 1953 

 

 

Margaret Trowell's catalogued drawings E, F, G and I were attributed as Nyoro wooden vessels.  Nyoro bowls were supported by multiple legs with sharply flexed outside planes.

 

 

 

        

 

Meat tray legs closely resembled those of a chameleon, which mirrors ancient Nyoro belief that the first humans who came to earth looked like chameleons.

 

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This Nyoro meat tray (A) was collected at the end of the 19th century and  rediscovered in Germany.

 

 

Franz Stuhlmann - Plate V

 

Franz Stuhlmann's displays a 19th century example he collected in Uganda prior to 1894.

 

A second rare example.

 

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Example (B)

 

The Nyoro stained their meat trays red-brown by rubbing them with a certain root.

 

Pokerwork was added for decoration.

 

 

Razel - Volkerkunde - 1895 -Vol 2 - Page 239

 

Prof. Dr. Friedrich Razel illustrated a Nyoro meat bowl in his 1895 work entitled Volkerkunde.

 

 

 

This is the only Nyoro food bowl we know of containing two compartments.

 

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Mbunda Food Bowl

 

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The Mbunda migrated eastwards from Angola into the Ba Rotze plain (Western Zambia) from the first half of the 19th century. They produced food bowls known as Mukeke or Mukeka and grain storage containers called Dondo. This is a lidded Mukeka once contained maize porridge relished with wild game. Open carved chevron decorations were more common during the late 19th to mid 20th centuries.

 

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Compliments of...

 

Galerie Ezakwantu

 

World leaders in aesthetically pleasing, authentic tribal art from Southern Africa.

 

 

Contact Galerie Ezakwantu for larger resolution images, availability and prices of items.

 

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Click a thumbnail to enter a page.

African Adornment

Axes

Basketry

Beadwork

Beer Cups

Beer Pots

Colonial

Containers

Contemporary

Currency

Dolls

Figures-Statues

Hair Combs

Headdresses - Wigs

Headrests - Neck Rests

Imbenge Pot Covers

Masks - Masques

Meat Platters

Milk Pail

Miscellaneous

Musical Instruments

Pipes

Shields

Snuff  Spoons

S - Bottles

Spoons - Ladles

Staffs

Status Objects

Stools - Thrones

Tobacco Bags

Weapons - Congo

Weapons SA

Weapons

 

 

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