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Simon Ottenberg photographs of Limba and Afikpo Peoples

National Museum of African Art

Object Details

Photographer
Ottenberg, Simon
Collector
Ottenberg, Simon
Place
Nigeria
Sierra Leone
Guinea
Africa
Occupation
Weavers
Topic
Beadwork
Headdresses -- headgear -- Africa
Rites and ceremonies -- Africa
Clothing and dress -- Africa
Cultural landscapes
Music
Dance
Photographer
Ottenberg, Simon
Culture
Fulbe (African people)
Igbo (African people)
Mandingo (African people)
Limba (African people)
Fula (African people)
See more items in
Simon Ottenberg photographs of Limba and Afikpo Peoples
Summary
The collection primarily includes photographs of Limba peoples taken by anthropologist Simon Ottenberg during field research in northern Sierra Leone within Bafodea Town, the capital of Wara Wara Bafodea Chiefdom, and Guinea, from October 1978 through July 1980. The collection also includes photographs taken while conducting field research at an Afikpo village-group, in southeastern Nigeria, from January 30, 1988 to February 5, 1988 and in 1992.
Biographical / Historical
Simon Ottenberg (1923-) is Emeritus Professor of Anthropology at the University of Washington. He studied under Melville J. Herskovits and William R. Bascom at Northwestern University. He was a 1970 Guggenheim fellow. He has written at least seven scholarly books and has curated numerous exhibitions.
Extent
3145 Slides (photographs) (color)
Date
between 1978-1992
Custodial History
16 photographs taken by Pa Huff, a Wesleyan Methodist Minister, at Bafodea old town and new town were donated to Ottenberg in 1999 by former field assistant Paul Hamaidu Mansaray.
Archival Repository
Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art
Identifier
EEPA.2005-001
Type
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Slides (photographs)
Color slides
Black-and-white transparencies
Arrangement note
The collection is arranged into two series by peoples, and further arranged by location. Arrangement Series 1: Limba Peoples, Sierra Leone and Guinea, 1978-1980 Subseries 1.1: Field Research, Year One, October 1978-August 1979 Subseries 1.2: Field Research, Year Two, September 1979-1980 Series 2: Afikpo Peoples, Guinea and Nigeria, 1988, 1992
Processing Information
Finding aid by Eden Orelove, 2018. Slides digitized in 2017.
Rights
Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws. Photographs by Pa Huff, Hamaidu Mansaray, and Labelle Prussin are restricted. In these cases, the photographer's permission is required for access and publication of images.
Genre/Form
Color slides
Black-and-white transparencies
Scope and Contents
The collection primarily includes photographs of Limba peoples taken by anthropologist Simon Ottenberg during field research in northern Sierra Leone within Bafodea Town, the capital of Wara Wara Bafodea Chiefdom, and Guinea, from October 1978 through July 1980. The collection also includes photographs taken while conducting field research at Afikpo village-groups in Guinea and southeastern Nigeria, from January 30, 1988 to February 5, 1988 and in 1992. There are also some photographs by Pa Huff, a Wesleyan Methodist Minister, Venice Lamb, and Professor Labelle Prussin.
Restrictions
Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.
Related Archival Materials note
Related EEPA collections include: EEPA 1996-020 and EEPA 1994-012 (video-recorded interviews conducted by Ottenberg), and EEPA 2000-007 (photographs taken in Southeastern Nigeria within the Afikpo Village Group). Simon Ottenberg Papers are located at the National Anthropological Archives, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.
Related link
Record ID
ebl-1536868297930-1536868298400-0
Metadata Usage
CC0

In the Collection

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  • Hukpodung basket made to Pay Layi, Kamagbembe village, Sierra Leone

  • Dalarabe Town, Guinea

  • Bendugu Village, Sierra Leone

  • Girls, elaborately dressed and covered with heavy oil, return from the stream to the village for a last, very controlled dance during final initiation phase, called "washing hands" or "turning" kakunutu, Kakoya Village, Sierra Leone

  • Man wearing hu ronko shirt, next to the weaver Momodu Conde, Kamanda Village, Sierra Leone

  • At the end of their bush period, initiated boys, coming out to their community in single file, wearing their brown native cloths and native cloth cap. They have taken off their small decorated wood slit gong and now bow down the Chief of Wara Wara Bafodea Chiefdom. Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Fulbe musical group at memorial for a non-Muslim Limba village head, Kadanso Village, Sierra Leone

  • Limba boys, on the shoulders of their followers, returning from the bush where they were dressed in an elaborate costume and beaded band hanging down the front of their chest, shortly before performing final acrobatic dance for their preinitiation period, Kasapena Village, Sierra Leone

  • Yoyo Mansaray making a fish trap, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Limba boys, shortly to be initiated, wearing headties and feminine dress, together with female relatives, preceding the initiation rite, Kadanso Village, Sierra Leone

  • Village attendance at a kukangtan musical performance at a memorial, also called second funeral, for a deceased person, Kakpongpon Village, Sierra Leone

  • Girls wearing colored beaded headband at their preinitiation dance, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • The weaver, Momodu Conteh, weaving at his standing loom, Sakuta Village, Sierra Leone

  • Limba boy, wearing his initiation dance dress, performs acrobatic dance for his initiation rite, Gbondokali, shortly before going to the bush, Kadanso Village, Sierra Leone

  • Natural landscape surrounding the village, Sirekude Village, Sierra Leone

  • Cloth band, alternating stripes of native and European white warp thread, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Suma Mannio Mansaray sewing cloth bands together, for an initiation costume to be used in the bush by a Limba boy, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Venice Lamb and the weaver, Suma Mannio Mansaray, weaving at his standing loom, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Limba boy, to be initiated, trying on his initiation costume to be used in the bush, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Kasapena Village boys announcing to friends and relatives that their initiation is just about finished, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Decorated wood storage box made by Kaparana, a Fulbe blacksmith, Kamabungbu village, Sierra Leone

  • Members of the women secret society, Bondo, returning from the bush with the kampa platform, Kakonso village, Sierra Leone

  • Small animal figure carved by Mohamed Bangura, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Carved Gbangbani men's secret society horn, Wara Wara Bafodea Chiefdom, Sierra Leone

  • Magical protective shirt, called saraka, displayed by Paul Hamidu Mansaray, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Child shirt of woven green cloth with embroidered design, near Hindia Village, Guinea

  • Hu ronko shirt stamped by Suma Mannio, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Roll of thread used by a Limba weaver, near Hindia Village, Guinea

  • Horn of an animal Limba people call a "reindeer," Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Boy performing acrobatic dance for his initiation rite, gbondokali, Kadankan village, Sierra Leone

  • Limba boy, in dress typically worn during the weeks preceding initiation dance, performs acrobatic dance in front of musical ensemble, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Salifu Mansaray decorating a corn cob, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Cloth of black and red lines on a blue background belonging to a girl, near Hindia Village, Guinea

  • Village scene looking toward Kabala, Sakuta Village, Sierra Leone

  • The weaver, Pa Modi, soaking warp native thread in medicine, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Belt, called wansamba, worn by initiated boys, at the end of their bush period, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Wearing their blue waistcloths, girls who have completed their first initiation watch boy performing acrobatic dance for his initiation rite, Kadankan village, Sierra Leone

  • Crowd on the road waiting for arrival of Honorable P.H. Kamara, a minister in the Sierra Leone government, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Protective charm with cowrie shells, called saraka, belonging to a warrior, near Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • The weaver, Bahinti, weaving at his standing loom, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Animal figure depicting a monkey, carved by Salifu Mansaray, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Ceremony of measuring the cloth to be used by boy, to be initiated, in the bush, part of the preliminary activities of Limba intiation rites, Sirekude Village, Sierra Leone

  • Abandoned Bafodea old site, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Crowning of the new village chief, Kakpongpon Village, Sierra Leone

  • Women's group of several older women greeting visitors at memorial for a deceased man, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Women's group of several older women imitating the deceased woman, at her memorial, also called second funeral, Kakonso Village, Sierra Leone

  • Musical group performing during communal farm work, Seredugu Village, Sierra Leone

  • At the end of his bush period, initiated boy wearing his brown native cloth and native cloth cap. Sirekude Village, Sierra Leone

  • Female musicians playing drums, accompanying female dancers of various age, Seredugu Village, Sierra Leone

  • Swear ritual held by a man from Siemamaya Village, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Daba Kamara firing clay pots, Kamanda Village, Sierra Leone

  • Bakunto, a men's secret society (Gbangbani) gong, inside Yeredi Mansaray blacksmith shed, Kamagbembe village, Sierra Leone

  • Paul Hamidu Mansaray wearing stamped hu ronko shirt with original design, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Small wood gong used as protective charm, called saraka, at a cassava field, near Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Kunkuma musical ensemble performing at a memorial, also called second funeral, for a deceased woman, Kakonso Village, Sierra Leone

  • Hu ronko shirt being lined by Ali Kamara, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Drum belonging to the village chief, used only for announcement, and Kuboli, a wood mask worn by a messenger of the men secret society, appearing publicly during the last day of the preinitiation period for boys, Seredugu Village, Sierra Leone

  • Limba girl with creative hairstyle including braids and cornrows, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Mohamed Bangura, a wood carver, making a bird figure, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Painting on cloth by Olayinka Burney-Nical, Freetown, Sierra Leone

  • Two native cloth hats dyed brown stamped by Pa Wosi Conteh, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Kunkuma musical ensemble performing at a memorial, also called second funeral, for a deceased woman, Kakonso Village, Sierra Leone

  • Mayoi musical group performing during road work, Telia Village, Sierra Leone

  • Group of boys, Siemamaya Village, Sierra Leone

  • The weaver, Pa Modi, with two four-pronged spingles, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Decorated wood storage box belonging to Salifu Kamara, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Female relatives, with decorated gourd spoon, of a Limba boy before he performs acrobatic dance for his initiation rite, Gbondokali, shortly before going to the bush, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Meeting place, called Wosi, with stone seats, Kakpongpon village, Sierra Leone

  • Suma Mannio Mansaray measuring a line to place tassels on the cloth, for an initiation costume to be used in the bush by a Limba boy, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Decorated post at the village mosque, Koin, Guinea

  • Girls, wearing colored kuta headband, at their initiation dance, Kadanso Village, Sierra Leone

  • Kono cloth from the Mende peoples area of Sierra Leone, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • The weaver, Bokari Mansaray, weaving on a sit-down loom, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Sword and metal sheath belonging to the father of Pa Wosi, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Mohamed Bangura, a wood carver, making an animal figure, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Limba women singing at the time boys, to be initiated, are being dressed with their elaborate initiation dance dress, Seredugu village, Sierra Leone

  • Members of the women secret society, Bondo, returning from the bush with the kampa platform, Kakonso village, Sierra Leone

  • Female relatives of initiated boys who have just come out at the end of their bush period, wearing their brown native cloths and native cloth cap. Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Hu ronko shirt stamped by Sayo, a brother of Pa Wosi Conteh, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Standing female figure, carved by a local artist, Freetown, Sierra Leone

  • Mandingo musicians playing guitars with battery amplifications, Sirekude Village, Sierra Leone

  • Two sons of the Chief of Kasongo, wearing traditional Limba hunter's caps, Telia Village, Sierra Leone

  • The weaver, Suma Mannio Mansaray, with holder for woven cloth on his weaving frame, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Narrow strip native white band woven by the weaver Salifu Mansaray, Kamanda Village, Sierra Leone

  • Girls wearing beaded headbands for their initiation dance, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • A bride dances in her own village during the day of activities before the wedding, Siemamaya Village, Sierra Leone

  • Limba boy, wearing his initiation dance dress and beaded band hanging down the front of his chest, performs acrobatic dance for his initiation rite, Gbondokali, shortly before going to the bush, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Seating area in initiating boys grove, Sirekude Village, Sierra Leone

  • Diko basket made by Pa Layi, for storing cotton, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Limba woman with mfuta hairstyle, attending acrobatic dance performances during final preinitiation period for boys, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Carved Gbangbani men's secret society horn, with cowrie shells, Sierra Leone

  • Fulbe musicians performing during communal labor at Mantia River swamp area, near Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Women in ashobi dress dancing and singing with the Rainbow group, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Simon Ottenberg, Freetown, Sierra Leone

  • Women's group of several older women imitating the late Pa Bayo, at his memorial, also called second funeral, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone

  • Carved Gbangbani men's secret society gong, Wara Wara Bafodea Chiefdom, Sierra Leone

  • The grave of Chief Hamidu Hono, a famous Bafodea leader, Kadanso village, Sierra Leone

  • Batoro, a fiber mask worn by a messenger of the men secret society, appears publicly during the last day of the preinitiation period for boys, Kadanso Village, Sierra Leone

  • Natural landscape surrounding the village, Sirekude Village, Sierra Leone

  • Decorated cane, carved by a local artist, Freetown, Sierra Leone

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Silver rings worn on left hand fingers of Alimamy Salifu Mansaray, Chief of Wara Wara Bafodea Chiefdom, Bafodea Town, Sierra Leone
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