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Maasai girl drawing cow's blood into a calabash gourd, Olengaitoli village, Kenya

National Museum of African Art

Object Details

Local Numbers
M 4 MSI 27.2 EE 59
General
Title is provided by EEPA staff based on photographer's notes.
Local Note
57938 26
Frame value is 31.
Slide No. M 4 MSI 27.2 EE 59
Photographer
Elisofon, Eliot
Collection Photographer
Elisofon, Eliot
Place
Africa
Kenya
Topic
Cattle -- Africa
Clothing and dress -- Africa
Body arts
Beadwork
Calabashes
Photographer
Elisofon, Eliot
Culture
Maasai (African people)
See more items in
Eliot Elisofon Field collection
Eliot Elisofon Field collection / Kenya
Extent
1 Slides (photographs) (col.)
Date
1959
Archival Repository
Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art
Identifier
EEPA.1973-001, Item EEPA EECL 11036
Type
Archival materials
Slides (photographs)
Color slides
Collection Citation
Eliot Elisofon Field Collection, EEPA 1973-001, Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution
Collection Rights
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. Where noted, some images remain under the copyright of Life/Shutterstock. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.
Genre/Form
Color slides
Scope and Contents
"The Maasai (Masai) are unique among East African pastoralists in their cultural choice to live exclusively of pastoral foods. They attempt to subsist on a diet solely consisting of the milk, meat and blood of their domestic stock. Their dietary ideal excludes, and their entire culture strongly devaluates, all plants food and game meat." [Kaj Arhem, 1987: Milk, Meat and Blood. Working Papers in African Studies, University of Uppsala.]. "Pure pastoralism is no longer a reality for most Maasai. More and more the traditional milk and meat diet occasionally supplemented with blood is being combined with maize, potatoes, beans and other vegetable foods. The main reason for this is that because of population growth, environmental degradation and land alienation, Maasai are no longer able to keep enough animals to feed themselves." [Klumpp D., 1987: Maasai Art and Society:Age and Sex, Time and Space, Cash and Cattle. U.M.I Dissertation Service]. This photograph was taken when Eliot Elisofon was on assignment for Life magazine and traveled to Africa from August 18, 1959 to December 20, 1959.
Collection Restrictions
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Related link
Record ID
ebl-1536870822481-1536871014509-4
Metadata Usage
CC0
GUID
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/xo70505a042-bd51-4cb6-96a6-49dedfa6d847

Related Content

  • Eliot Elisofon Field collection

Maasai girl drawing cow's blood into a calabash gourd, Olengaitoli village, Kenya
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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