African Pipes - Tobacco Pipes - Pipe Smoking Xhosa Zulu Pipe

African Pipes

Tobacco Pipes - Dagga Pipes - Pipes a Tabac Africaines

Afrikanische Pfeife - Afrikanische Pfeifen

Xhosa - Thembu - Pondo Pipes

Southern African Pipes - Ingawa

Circa 1900 - 1950

Thembu Celebration - Qwathi - Joan Broster's Trading Store - by Barbara Tyrrell @ Copyright

Natives in Southern Africa smoked Hemp (Cannabis) prior to the arrival of van Riebeeck in 1652. The Hottentots named it Dagga - a name used by all Southern African language groups to this day. Hemp probably arrived in the region through Arab East African trade. The Portuguese introduced tobacco to Africa from the Americas between the 15th and 16th centuries. Its use became wide spread in the Eastern Cape (Transkei) due to European penetration into their country. Europeans suppressed the use of hemp, while promoting trade in tobacco and glass beads. From this early contact and trade, countless variations of pipes emerged.

Pipes Smoked by Women

Left - Joan Broster with Thembu friends at Qwathi - Photographed by Barbara Tyrrell

Pipes from the Eastern Cape were called ingawa and were smoked by both men and women. Women smoked larger pipes that were sometimes beaded - which complemented the smoker's attire.

Thembu Ingawa Pipe - Each of our Xhosa and related pipes include a custom made mount.

Duggan-Cronin - THE CISKEI AND SOUTHERN TRANSKEI TRIBES

During the early 20th century, a pipe in hand was as important to a native as clothing. Pipe 'fashion' developed rapidly and changed along with beaded attire.

Beaded Thembu Ingawa Pipe

Thembu - Xhosa Beaded Pipe

Beaded Xhosa or Thembu Ingawa Pipe

This pipe, circa 1940, combines elements of Xhosa and Thembu, but the complicated bead colour combinations make it more likely Xhosa from the area around Umtata. The Pondo also lived in the area, which may have influenced this.

Old woman lighting her beaded pipe from flint. - Ivy Albums by Lynn Accutt - Circa 1900

Beaded Thembu or Xhosa Pipe

Xhosa Beaded Pipe

Beaded Xhosa Pipe

This is an exceptionally large beaded Xhosa pipe dating to the 1950's. People say that female long stem pipes were developed to keep the smoke away from babies carried on a woman's back, but there is little doubt that they were primarily fashionable prestige objects.

Prestige Xhosa Ingawa Pipe

All of our Xhosa and related pipes include a custom made stand.

Xhosa Pipes Smoked by Men

Duggan-Cronin - THE CISKEI AND SOUTHERN TRANSKEI TRIBES

Pipes smoked by men were markedly shorter than those of women - but often more complicated in design.

Inlayed Xhosa Pipe ex Trevor Barton Collection

Lead inlay was added to Xhosa and related pipe bowls and / or stems during the 19th century and into the first half of the 20th century. To achieve adhesion, 90% angled grooves were cut into the wood and they gripped the lead.

Inlayed Xhosa Pipe ex Trevor Barton Collection with horn stem.

Xhosa and related peoples pipe artisanship was unique to the Eastern Cape region of Southern Africa. Bowls of early-collected examples were carved thin, often nearly as thin as the inner tin or iron container. Sometimes carved bone, horn or ivory was added to the stem.

The Trevor Barton Collection of Smoking Pipes

Trevor Barton smoking one of 1000's of pipes.

The locals of Bermondsey and Portobello markets knew Trevor Barton (1920 - 2008) as ‘The Pipe Man’. He collected pipes for over 50 years and arguably owned the most diverse collection of pipes and smoking memorabilia in the world. Trevor was a valued member of Academie Internationale de la Pipe. A selection of his pipes were sold at Christies - South Kensington. Click the image above to view a documentary of Trevor Barton and his wife - circa 1955.

Xhosa related inlayed Ingawa Pipe

Inlayed Xhosa Pipe ex Trevor Barton Collection

This pipe is carved extremely thin and may well date to the 19th century. Our view is that its decoration might represent marriage beadwork once worn on the owners head. Two sets of inlay appearing like 'three fingers' are found on either side of the upper pipe bowl - connecting to a solid band.

Xhosa or Thembu male pipe - ex Trevor Barton Collection

The 'fingers' join by means of a flowing half circle inlay on the forward side of the pipe bowl. To the rear of the pipe - a single line runs down towards the stem.

The Bhaca, Mpondomise, Pondo and Sotho people are found to the north and east of the main Xhosa population. The beadwork of the groups are interconnected with each other and overlap to the Zulu - above and below.

Center photo - Thembu Man - Barbara Tyrrell @ Copyright

This example was published with other pipes on page 233 in PFEIFEN, HANF UND TABAK IN SCHWARZAFRIKA by Wolfgang Cremer. (above lower right)

Another

This example has a complicated - fully functional stem construction.

Xhosa Pipe - Item 638

Ovambo Pipe - Kwanyama

Angola / Namibia

Ovambo pipes are structurally similar to those of the Chokwe and related people.

Large prestigious pipes were smoked by headmen and chiefs.

Brass and or copper wire worked over deep carved patterns is indicative that this pipe is of Ovambo origin.

The Ovambo call their pipes ombiga jomakaja.

Kuba Pipe

DRC - Congo - Zaire

Pfeifen, Hanf und Tabak in Schwarzafrika - Wolfgang Cremer – pg. 206 # 150 - Bushoong

This old Kuba or related pipe dates to the first half of the 20th century. It is a prestige pipe and was likely the property of a chief. The face shares the coiffure of the Ndengese (Dengese) and facial elements of Pende carvers.

Click thumbs to view larger images.

The removable pipe bowl resembles palm wine cups carved by the Kuba and related peoples. It is decorated with three brass tacks, two on either ear and the third, at the rear of the coiffeur.

The most common Kuba pipes lacked facial representation. Most of the pipes that had facial features - faced away from the smoker. In contrast, our pipe faces the smoker.

Pfeifen, Hanf und Tabak in Schwarzafrika Rund Um Tabakspfeifen - Museum Für Völkerkunde - Berlin - Pg 59

Wolfgang Cremer – pg 205 no 149 - King Pero

Above left, King Pero of the Lele smokes a more common faceless pipe. Above right, a related and rare Kuba pipe with a face that faces the smoker - Museum Für Völkerkunde - Berlin.

East African Water Pipe

19th Century Collected

Letzte Reise von David Livingstone in Centralafrika - 1872 - Vol ll - Page 53 - Zanzibar

Livingstone's servants Chuma and Susi are shown smoking a water pipe made from bamboo.

This early collected pipe has six poker worked Union Jack flag inter-dispersed with triangular forms.

The practice of cooling and cleansing the smoke of a tobacco pipe by drawing it through water was not followed in the Americas nor has it been very popular among Europeans. The Bushmen and Hottentots of southern Africa used the dagga (hemp, marijuana, cannabis) pipe, which cooled and mitigated the effects of smoke by drawing it through water contained in a horn. On contact with Europeans, Southern Africans produced more orthodox pipes of almost every possible material and size.