IDNO

N.102161.MF


Description

“Saɣəbazaa sitting by his bakologo & weaving a Kusɔk for his groundnuts. Nov 10th 1934.” [Fortes' annotation]

An elder male identified as Saɣəbazaa sitting by his bakolog (divining shrine) and weaving a wicker basket known as a kusɔk for storing his groundnuts. He is wearing a sleeveless tunic. Sitting next to him is a young Tallensi boy also wearing a tunic. In the foreground is a dog and in the background is a large termite mound.


Place

W Africa; Ghana; Upper East Region; Gorogo [Gold Coast; Northern Territories]


Cultural Affliation

Tallensi


Named Person

Saɣəbazaa


Photographer

?Fortes, Meyer


Collector / Expedition

Fortes, Meyer


Date

10 November 1934


Collection Name

Fortes Collection


Source

Drucker-Brown, Susan


Format

Glass Negative Halfplate


Primary Documentation


Other Information

N.102159.MF - N.102166.MF were kept in the box now numbered C549/.

Context: Fortes describes the elder male in this photograph. He writes, “One of my earliest friends and frankest informants at Tongo was Saɣəbazaa, an elder in whom the chief had the greatest confidence and who was universally esteemed for his industry and probity. Saɣəbazaa was the head (kpeem) of Nensuur yidɛm, a major segment of of one of the major segments of Tongo... Saɣəbazaa was the one who consulted the diviner on behalf of the chief and the whole of Tongo, in order to ascertain what offerings must be given to Mosuor and the chiefly ancestors.” (Fortes, 1945, p.53) [Alicia Fentiman, 29/4/2008]

Context: Groundnut farming is one of the most subsidiary crops, (sukpaam: arachis hpogea). “The head of a self-supporting unit interplants ground-nuts with his early millet on the compound farm. The crop yielded is his property, though any member of the unit can hep himself to some for food. But, in addition, almost every man and boy able to wield a hoe and most adult women have their own ground-nut fields (Sukpalaη). (Fortes and Fortes, 1936, p. 244) [Alicia Fentiman, 29/4/2008]

“We have seen grain and ground-nuts produced from granaries or storage baskets (kusɔk) twelve months after they had been packed, and in perfect condition.” (Fortes and Fortes, 1936, p.260) [Alicia Fentiman, 29/4/2008].

Context: “In addition, the cut of the narrowband smock reflects status and social importance. The most widespread and ordinary type is the danseka, a sleeveless smock (Fig. 9). This type, which can be worn by any adult, is the typical male garment of northern Ghana. ... According to a Frafra tailor, “Anyone can wear a danseka, even a chief” (interview at Zuarangu, February 1973). Except for the danseka which is usually purchased in the market, a smock of any importance is commissioned from a “reputable” tailor, especially one who handcrafts his product.” (Smith, F.T., 1982, ‘Frafra Dress,’ African Arts, Vol. 15, No. 3, pp. 36-42+92).

Bibliographical Reference: Fortes, M. and S. Fortes. 1936. “Food in the Domestic Economy of the Tallensi”. Africa: Journal of the International African Institute, Vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 237-276.

Fortes, Meyer, 1945. Dynamics of Clanship Among the Tallensi (London: Oxford University Press).

Fortes, Meyer, 1949. The Web of Kinship Among the Tallensi (London: Oxford University Press).

This catalogue record has been updated with the support of the Getty Grant Program Two. [Alicia Fentiman, 29/4/2008]]


FM:236811

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