sonzo666:

1-I suggest you to google "dogons and olubaru".Olubaru=olu(sacred)+baru(men/human beings).These people initiated to dogons mysteries.

If indeed Olubaru were to mean "sacred men" (which I do not believe that it does, since you have not supplied evidence that it does, and since I have found a different meaning given by a researcher who has studied their culture) then, based on what I posted earlier, it seems much more likely that the word "human beings" in the word "olubaru" would actually be the "aru" part, not "baru" in its entirety, though we would need an actual Dogon person to confirm this. Also, if one is going to attempt to try to find the etymology of words in a language one has no understanding of, wouldn't it be better to consult a native speaker of such a language or at least some sort of dictionary as reference or to use as "proof"?

And as I said, I was unable to find any confirmation that "olubaru" means "sacred human beings" or "sacred men" after looking up this word as you suggested. Here are some examples of what I found instead:

"In Dogon society there is a further form of segmentation whereby all males, and males only, are either inneomo (living man) or innepuru (dead man). This status is transmitted, not from father to son, but from a recently dead ancestor to a recently born child of the same minor lineage. Each man and woman stands in a special ritual relation to a dead ancestor or ancestress. The term nani is used of the dead ancestor and nani i of the living man or woman. The living nani performs sacrifices to his dead nani to aid him on his journey to heaven. Now if a man's nani were inneomo then one is also inneomo; if he were innepuru then one also is innepuru. The innepuru are lines of nani descending from the first ancestor to die in human form. Paulme says that there are eight adult innepuru in the two Ogols and this corresponds with the eight minor lineages to be found there. (Griaule says that there are thirty-eight innepuru in the two Ogols, while Leiris suggests that there may be eight olubaru in the region of Upper Sanga; the olubaru are chosen from among the innepuru.) The Innepuru are best described, perhaps, as a ritual category of men who, in virtue of their connexion with death, may come into contact with corpses, eat the flesh of animals killed in sacrifice, and build the menstruation huts." - David Tait, "An Analytical Commentary on the Social Structure of the Dogon" (1950)

"It is in the Awa that the innepuru ('dead men') achieve their maximum importance. All initiated Dogon males take part in Awa rites. It is innepuru men, however, who become officers of the society. All initiated men may take part in dances performed during a dama and must be present during the performance of a sigi. It is especially to be noted that women who have married outside Upper Sanga must return to the region during a sigi." - David Tait, "An Analytical Commentary on the Social Structure of the Dogon" (1950)

"The Awa officers are the olubaru, chosen from among the innepuru by the older men who have performed one sigi; the mulono or men who have been present at two sigis; the kabaga, assistants to the olubaru; and yasigine, a priestess. The olubaru undergo a special treatment to learn the myths of the masks, the secret language (sigi so), and the taboos of the masks." - David Tait, "An Analytical Commentary on the Social Structure of the Dogon" (1950)

"Every sixty years, the Dogon hold a ceremony known as the Sigui which celebrates the replacement of one generation by another. Those old men who have participated in two such festivals and are known as mulono, are at the head of the Awa. Behind them in the hierarchy are all those men who have seen one Sigui, the olubaru. At the head of each Awa society is the oldest mulono. Middle-aged men serve as masters of ceremony or dance masters, imina giru, and are responsible for seeing to the correct preparation and evacuation of the masked dances. With each Sigui festival a new group of men of the Awa become olubaru, and learn the secret language of the Sigui." - Pascal James Imperato, Dogon Cliff Dwellers: The Art of Mali's Moutain People (1978)

"It is also important to study another musical instrument, the bullroarer, in terms of the Dogon perspective, and to understand the symbolism of its humming sound. In the region of Sanga, three bullroarers called imina na are carved before the sigi ceremony by its participants. The young initiated dignitaries called olubaru, "masters of the bush," are responsible for the rites pertaining to the "Great Mask" that bears the same name as the bullroarers and that is carved, painted, and consecrated for the ceremony. The olubaru have completed a long retreat, during which they have learned the special language of sigi as well as the handling of the bullroarers, which they generally make hum at night before and during the entire course of the ceremony." - Germaine Dieterlen, "Masks and Mythology among the Dogon" (1989)


This term olubaru, whose meaning has been given above, does not seem to translate to the meaning you gave for it, but if you could provide a source which gives olubaru as literally meaning what you said it does, that would clear things up. Because so far, I think the idea of "olubaru" as "sacred men" is merely descriptive, not an etymology of the word.

Perhaps somebody described the olubaru as the sacred men of the Dogon (which is not truly inaccurate as a description, but does not necessarily mean that that is the literal meaning of the word) and you took that as the literal meaning of the word.

2-You cant contest the fact that bantus were the first settlers in the whole niger area!

I was just seeking an explanation for what significant similarities in material remnants of culture (such as ancient terracotta relics that resemble the Nok terracotta, as a start) you thought there were between Bantu language areas and the Nok culture area of north central Nigeria. I was not necessarily coming out to "oppose" the idea outright though I admit I have never heard of anything like it before (about Bantu language speakers being the first settlers in Nigeria or about the Nok culture having a link to Bantu language speakers). The idea does sound unusual, but that could change if you supply strong evidence to support the idea.

However if I decided to contest this claim, I don't see why I could not contest it. Since there does not actually seem to be anything (as far as material culture) to suggest that speakers of Bantu languages were "the first settlers" in the Nigerian area (I assume you mean the Nigerian area and not the area around the entire Niger river), I don't see why this claim could not be contested. I have no personal preference as to whether the Bantu or non-Bantu language groups of Africa were the first settlers in Nigeria, but I would prefer to see some actual evidence for the claim, before I (or other people) start to accept that the Nok culture's art should be attributed specifically to other areas/cultures outside of the Nigerian area.

The Fangs(cameroun and gabon) oral history places their origin in northern part of Nigeria

So were the ancestors of the Fang people of Cameroon and Gabon responsible for the art? Because I've been looking at Fang art, and I don't see the resemblances with Nok art, whereas there are at least a few resemblances between Nok art and some other west African art. Art historians have noticed some of these similarities, but I don't recall them mentioning much about similarities between Nok art and the art found in Bantu language areas.

and it talks of terrible battle the fangs waged against people riding on top of strange animals(hausas or fulanis I guess! ).

You might not have been aware of this, but there are Nok sculptures which depict some of their people (the Nok culture people) riding "strange animals." Perhaps you should look at more of the art. The Nok culture's people seem to have been very much aware of the existence of "strange animals" which people could ride on.

If riding on "strange animals" is really the mark of "Sudano-Sahelian" groups, then perhaps that is what the Nok were - an ancient "Sudano-Sahelian" culture of north central Nigeria.

The fact that the Nok civilization suddenly disappeared suggests to me that it was overwhelmed/destroyed /absorbed by external forces.

Archaeological research on the Nok culture is still ongoing. Have you read any of the publications on the Nok by researchers? In fact, there was a book that came out near the end of 2014 on just this subject (the archaeology of the Nok terracotta sculptures and the origin and fate of that society). This "sudden disappearance" idea is not set in stone as a fact. I would wait on the archaeological record to show it ('sudden disappearance') decisively, and the archaeological study of that culture is actually quite young.

Also, how do you know that the actual people responsible for that art just "disappeared"? Several of the Nigerian groups that later made artistically sophisticated and detailed art that we know for a fact were responsible for the art found in their areas at one point stopped making such art in later centuries. A significant decline in wealth, societal stability, a loss of internal motivation, or significant conflicts with neighbors are some of the various reasons why a sophisticated art tradition in "medieval" Nigeria (just as in ancient Nigeria) might no longer have been supported by a society's elite, but the fact that a group no longer makes high quality art of a certain type does not mean that that group of people or their culture has "disappeared" or was destroyed. If this were true, very little ancient or "medieval" art in Africa or elsewhere could be ascribed to the cultures that actually produced them.

As for the terracottas,if bantus could build the oldest furnaces in Africa

My question was about regional art trends more than technology actually. There are other terracotta art traditions in West Africa among its non-Bantu language speaking peoples, and a few of these are almost as old as the Nok terracotta tradition, but I don't know of such a trend in the Bantu language regions so I would like to be enlightened about whether there was such a trend in ancient Bantu language areas.

,there is no reason they could make terracotta figures.

We know that Bantu groups could make terracotta figures. The "Lydenburg heads" are one example, and these are the earliest that I know about in the Bantu areas. But the "Lydenburg heads" of southern Africa are far removed from the Nok terracottas in style (in addition to being very far from the Nok area geographically), unlike some of the later art of west Africa, which actually show some similarities (such as in the depiction of the accoutrements of figures depicted) that have been noted by art historians. And in any case, the oldest non-Nok terracotta figures from Nigeria and west Africa seem to be older than the "Lydenburg heads". So what I would really like to know is if there are other ancient (as old or nearly as old as the Nok culture's sculptures) terracotta figures from Bantu language areas of Africa? And do any of these ancient terracotta figures from Bantu language areas - if they exist - show significant resemblances with Nok art in particular?

After all,there is not so much talent needed to do so!

The talent, in the case of the Nok culture, lies not so much in the technology, but rather in the detail, sophistication, refinement, etc. of the art itself, several examples of which are nearly as sophisticated, refined and detailed as some of the best art from the cultures that produced art in later times in Nigeria. If making works of art as accomplished as the Nok art were so easy or required so little talent, every ancient culture in Africa that made any art would have done something similar, but in fact, this was not the case.

As for your reference to the Haya, I know about them already, but the quotes you posted are about steel, not about where the oldest furnaces in Africa were, and in any case, the issue of where the oldest furnaces in Africa were is not really what the point of my earlier questions were. I was really just curious about regional artistic trends.

bigfrancis21:


I would suggest that you quit trying to modify the post and leave it as it is, or identify the anti-spam bot trigging part of the post and take it out to prevent further 'spamming' by anti spam bot.

Yeah, I had left it alone, and I was fine with it after I was done modifying it. But then the site hosting the two images disallowed linking of images from their site, so the image did not display as it had been displaying before. So what I was going to do is save the images myself and then upload them and post different (better) image URLS as a replacement. So I should only need to modify it one more time.

The reason it was banned as spam the first time (and second time), was actually because I included a link to a webpage giving a source, which I did not do later after I realized that that link was why it was getting banned as spam. After the first time it was banned (because I included a link giving a source), it banned me and hid the post again after I tried to modify it despite the fact that I no longer included a link to the website that I was using as a source. It is just banning me and hiding the post every time I try to modify it because it banned me the first time for including a link as a source for the images.

I would just like to modify it one more time. Those two images aren't so special or anything though, so if you can't do anything about it, it's no big deal.

esere826:
@ physicsQED

great stuff you've been posting.

Looking at some of these pictures especially of the cityscapes, a question comes to mind.
How did it relate to their agrarian nature (for those that were into agriculture)?

Let me explain..for example,
I always imagined that in the ancient Benin kingdom, households were not clustered together.
each household would be surrounded by its farm, and the only place of building cluster would probably be the village square or market

so i am thinking,
did these guys who lived in clustered cities as shown in your pictures
have farmlands that were apportioned to them which were probably outside the city walls?
If this was the case, would it not have been realy easy for the enemy to cut off their food supply in times of war?

Please, what are your thoughts?

This is a very good question and I'll give my opinion based on what I've read later today or tomorrow.

sonzo666:

Your realise that bantus were the first settlers in the whole niger area.They created the Nok civilization in Nigeria.All other ethnic groups of sudano-sahelian origin(hausas,yorubas,igbos,fulanis..etc..) are later settlers .

So are there any ancient sculptures that resemble the Nok sculptures or even ancient terracotta sculptures that have been found in any of the actual Bantu language areas? There are even other ancient terracotta sculptures besides those of the Nok culture that have been found in Nigeria, but I'm not aware of ancient (by ancient I mean something like 2000+ years old or close to that age) terracotta sculptures that have been found in Bantu language areas, so it would be nice to be enlightened about that.

I am also 90% certain that the dogons are bantus who mixed with sudano-sahelian people.Dogons use the word Baru for human beings!There is nothing more bantu than that!And dogon culture is totally different from all the surrounding cultures (mandes,fulanis,bambaras....etc..)

Which group of Dogon uses "baru" for human beings? There are multiple Dogon groups. For example, none of these four groups (Walo, Beni, Nanga, Jamsay) use that term:

http://dogonlanguages.org/docs/Nanga_Dict_12_2007.pdf
http://dogonlanguages.org/docs/Beni_Dict_12_2007.pdf
http://dogonlanguages.org/docs/Jamsay_vocab.pdf
http://dogonlanguages.org/docs/Walo_Dict_12_2007.pdf

So which group of Dogon are you referring to when you say they use "baru" for human beings?

PhysicsMHD:
Post was re-hidden after I edited it. Sorry about that. I have to make the same request again.

I tried modifying the same post on p. 11 in that "Interesting Images" thread because two of the images had stopped showing up. I would appreciate it if a mod could unhide the post and unban "PhysicsQED." Thanks in advance.

(I also might have to modify the post again, which might lead to another ban).

Post was re-hidden after I edited it. Sorry about that. I have to make the same request again.

"Samori Toure in Beyla (Guinea) in 1898, shortly after his capture in Guélémou (Ivory Coast). The Almamy does not seem crushed by his defeat."

From Histoire de l'Afrique Noire, D'hier à Demain by Joseph Ki-Zerbo

"Entrance to the Palace of the Sultan of Rey (Adamawa, Cameroon). The Rey emirate was in the first half of the nineteenth century, one of the outposts of the uprising caused in the Central Sudan by the Revolution of Usman dan Fodio. Note the infantry and cavalry."

From Histoire de l'Afrique Noire, D'hier à Demain by Joseph Ki-Zerbo

[img]http://www.webafriqa.net/library/history/ki-zerbo/histoire-afrique-noire/photos/pictures/1024x573x23-2-palais-ahmadou-segouF.jpg.pagespeed.ic.cAzzAMeoow.webp[/img]

"The former palace of Sheikh Ahmadou in Segou. Sudanese style storey buildings. In taking Segou, El-Hadj Omar incurred the irreconcilable hatred of the Bambara."

From Histoire de l'Afrique Noire, D'hier à Demain by Joseph Ki-Zerbo


[Ségou, in Mali, was the capital of the Bambara empire, until its conquest by the Toucouleur leader Umar Tall.]

^
Thanks. Unfortunately, it seems that I have to repeat that request for the last post in that thread made on p. 11 under the "PhysicsQED" moniker.

If one of the mods could unhide the last post made under the moniker "PhysicsQED" on this thread:

https://www.nairaland.com/1249503/interesting-images-precolonial-early-colonial/11

I would appreciate it. Thanks in advance.

^

Thanks, but I tried to edit that post (I noticed some typos and 1 error) and it banned me again for modifying it. Could you unban me again and unhide that post again? I won't edit it this time (I've learned my lesson there), and I'll just leave it alone. Thanks again, and sorry about asking you to do this again.

Shymmex, I was going to post much more information, but the spambot stopped me. The particular post it decided to hide was kind of necessary as far as the content of my response, so I don't really intend to comment at length until it's unhidden. And that hidden post is one of the ones I was going to post that relates more directly to the issue of that Benin-Ijebu claim, unlike the preceding posts.

Also, I don't actually have any interest in the Ijebu-Benin claim, and I was surprised to see it brought up when I mentioned the issue of Benin possibly having a presence west along the coast at the border of, or in, Dahomey/Benin Republic and when that might have started. I think maybe TerraCotta has an interest in the claim and he wanted to discuss it. So I'm discussing it.

On the last thing you wrote, I already referenced some sources that talk about the connections and I'm not really in the habit of memorizing all of the details of large books which I read years ago alongside several other things, so I couldn't tell you anything just off of memory.

Hey Odumchi, I was banned in the thread "Maps Of Kingdoms, Peoples, States, And Cities In Africa Through Time" by the spambot. I would appreciate it if you could unban me and unhide my post.

The hidden post is the one immediately below this one:

https://www.nairaland.com/1253380/maps-kingdoms-peoples-states-cities/2#16004894

I had much more to write and to post, but the spambot banned me for my last post, so I'll respond to this thread tomorrow if the mod unbans me and unhides my post by then.

Hey Odumchi, a post of mine in the thread "Maps Of Kingdoms, Peoples, States, And Cities In Africa Through Time" got banned by the spambot. The post is about the Ewe and their possible connections to Ketu.

It's the post immediately above this post: https://www.nairaland.com/1253380/maps-kingdoms-peoples-states-cities/1#15602849

It was hidden by the spam bot and the QED moniker banned. If you could unhide the post and unban me I would appreciate it. Thanks.

[img]http://raai.library.yale.edu/web/art/5/1/20854_images_image_5128_medium.jpg[/img]

Publication: 1908. Rütimeyer, L. "Weitere Mitteilungen über West-Afrikanische Steinidole (Mit Tafel VIII & IX, sowie zwei Abb. im Text)." Internationales Archiv für Ethnographie., Vol. Bande XVIII.

Original language: German

Illustrator: , Bottom right reads: Lichtdruckanstalt Alfred Ditishein, Basel [Alfred Ditishein Institute for Photolithography, Basel]

Illustration technique: b/w studio photograph

Keywords:
• Sierra Leone (Country, region, place)
• Cameroon (Country, region, place)
• steatite (Materials and techniques)
• carved stone (Materials and techniques)
• soapstone (Materials and techniques)
• wood (Materials and techniques)
• clasped hands (Notable features)
• crouching (Notable features)
• double figure (Object name, type)
• head (Object name, type)
• bust (Object name, type)
• janus figure (Object name, type)
• nomoli (Object name, type)
• pomdo (Object name, type)
• sculpture (Object name, type)
• statuette (Object name, type)
• Bakundu ? (Style, culture group)
• Kissi (Style, culture group)
• Mende (Style, culture group)

Never mind. Problem solved (changed my email address).

Hey Odumchi, I got banned in this thread and the post got hidden:

https://www.nairaland.com/1249503/interesting-images-precolonial-early-colonial/7

I would appreciate it if you could show the post and unban me.

Alright, I've responded.

[img]http://raai.library.yale.edu/web/art/2/3/54346_images_image_2337_medium.jpg[/img]

Publication: 1906. Staudinger. "Diskussion über den Vortrag des Hrn. von Luschan." Zeitschrift für Ethnologie; Organ der Berliner Gesellschaft für Anthropologie, Ethnologie und Urgeschichte., Vol. 38 Jahrgang, No. Heft VI.

Text translation: “If one looks closer at the beautifully reproduced piece here (fig. 5), one finds two figures on the upper part of the column, just below the main depictions, that appear not to be consistent with the character of the whole. One of the figures, an antelope, stands on its head i.e. is depicted upside down on the sculpture.” (p. 919)

Illustration technique: b/w studio photograph

Keywords:
• Great Zimbabwe (Country, region, place)
• soapstone (Materials and techniques)
• antelope (Notable features)
• bovine (Notable features)
• missing head (Notable features)
• broken (Notable features)
• upside-down figure (Notable features)
• vulture (Notable features)
• bird sculpture (Object name, type)
• figurated finial (Object name, type)
• Ndebele (Style, culture group)
• Shona (Style, culture group)

[img]http://raai.library.yale.edu/web/art/2/2/4711_images_image_2274_medium.jpg[/img]

Publication: 1906. Luschan, Felix von. "Bericht über eine Reise in Südafrika." Zeitschrift für Ethnologie; Organ der Berliner Gesellschaft für Anthropologie, Ethnologie und Urgeschichte., Vol. 38 Jahrgang, No. Heft VI.

Original language: German

Caption translation: Vulture and cylindrical form made from stone of unknown origin, Simbabwe. From photograph by Dr. Haevernick. 1890

Illustrator: Dr. Haevernick,

Illustration technique: b/w studio photograph

Keywords:
• Great Zimbabwe (Country, region, place)
• soapstone (Materials and techniques)
• bird (Notable features)
• figurated finial (Notable features)
• ornamental (Notable features)
• vulture (Notable features)
• sculpture (Object name, type)
• Ndebele (Style, culture group)
• Shona (Style, culture group)

[img]http://raai.library.yale.edu/web/art/2/5/42902_images_image_2579_medium.jpg[/img]

Publication: 1897. Ratzel, Friedrich (transl. A. J. Butler). The History of Mankind, Vol. II.

Caption: Spoons: 1,2 Mambunda; 3,4, Zulu; 5,6, Bechuana; 7,8, no certain information - old pieces from the Lichtenstein Collection (Berlin Museum)

Illustrator: , unsigned

Illustration technique: studio engraving

Keywords:
• South Africa (Country, region, place)
• Zimbabwe (Country, region, place)
• Southern Africa (Country, region, place)
• pigment (Materials and techniques)
• wood (Materials and techniques)
• antelope (Notable features)
• bird's head (Notable features)
• cow (Notable features)
• janus (Notable features)
• quadruped (Notable features)
• zebra ? (Notable features)
• decorative (Notable features)
• figurated handle (Notable features)
• ladel (Object name, type)
• animals (Object name, type)
• spoon (Object name, type)
• Ndebele (Style, culture group)
• Tswana (Style, culture group)

[img]http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/africa/livingstone/livingstone2-3.jpg[/img]

“Dance of Landeens, or Zulus, Arrived at Shupanga to Lift the Annual Tribute of the Portuguese”

"The Landeens or Zulus are lords of the right bank of the Zambesi; and the Portuguese, by paying this fighting tribe a pretty heavy annual tribute, practically admit this. Regularly every year come the Zulus in force to Senna and Shupanga for their accustomed tribute. The few wealthy merchants of Senna groan under the burden, for it falls chiefly on them. They submit to pay annually 200 pieces of cloth, of sixteen yards each, besides beads and brass wire, knowing that refusal involves war, which might end in the loss of all they possess." - Narrative of an Expedition to the Zambesi and Its Tributaries, and of the Discovery of the Lakes Shirwa and Nyassa, 1858-1864, p. 30

The image above is of the Ngoni Zulus. "Landeen" was just a term that the Portuguese used to refer to any group of Zulus.

[img]http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/africa/gardiner/gardiner6.jpg[/img]

“Amatembu Man & Woman / Zoolus in Their War Dress”

"The war-dress consists of a thick, full kilt, composed of cats’ tails, descending nearly to the knee, the shoulders and upper part of the body are decorated with the long hair of ox tails, and the head is protected by an otter skin cap; the whole has a very martial appearance. . . . The shield is made of ox hide, with a stick secured down the middle, and ornamented at one end with leopard’s fur, it reaches from the ground to about the mouth of a moderate sized person; in windy and in wet weather they are almost useless, and, in the latter case, are frequently rolled up when on a march." - Narrative of a Journey to the Zoolu Country, in South Africa. 1836., pp. 101, 103

[img]http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/africa/owen/owen1.jpg[/img]

“A Hollontonte, Native of the Southern Side of the Mapoota River”

"The following description of their young chief Chinchingany will suffice, with a few exceptions, for that of the whole tribe. Round his head, just above the eyes, was a band of fur, somewhat resembling in size and colour a fox’s tail, neatly trimmed and smoothed. . . . [R]ound this circle was a thick ring of twisted hide, fixed in its position by the curling over of the surrounding hair, which was altogether sufficiently thick to resist a considerable blow. . . . On one side of his head was a single feather of some large bird as an emblem of his rank . . . Round his body were tied two strings, with twisted stripes of hide, with the hair on them, much resembling monkeys’ tails; the upper row was fastened close under the arms, and hung down about twelve inches, the end of each tail being cut with much precision and regularity; the lower row resembled the upper, and commenced exactly where the latter terminated, until they reached the knees. It bore altogether a great resemblance to the Scotch kilt. On his ankles and wrists he had brass rings or bangles. His shield was of bullock’s hide, about five feet long and three-and-a-half broad; down the middle was fixed a long stick, tufted with hair, by means of holes cut for the purpose, and projecting above and below beyond the shield about five inches. To this stick were attached his assagayes and spears; the only difference in these weapons is that the former is narrow in the blade and small for throwing, the latter broad and long, with a stronger staff for the thrust. . . . [T]his [costume] is entirely military, and used only when upon warlike expeditions." - Narrative of Voyages to Explore the Shores of Africa, Arabia, and Madagascar, Performed in H.M. Ships Leven and Barracouta (1833), Vol. 1, pp. 93-95

The man in the drawing is a Khoisan man from southern Africa.

[img]http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/africa/barth/barth3.jpg[/img]

“Kanó, from Mount Dalá / Febr 10th 1851”

"Kanó for us was a station of importance not only from a scientific but also from an economical point of view. Instead of being provided with ready cash, we had received in Múrzuk, on account of the British government, merchandise which, we had been assured, would not only be safer than money, but would also prove more advantageous for us. . . . [Hence] nothing could be more disagreeable and disheartening to me, though I was not quite unprepared for it, than the information which I received the very evening of my arrival in Kanó, that the price of merchandise such as I had was very low. . . . The distances in Kanó, though less than those of London, are very great; and the ceremonies to be gone through are scarcely less tedious than those at any European court. . . . [T]he whole scenery of the town in its great variety of clay houses, huts, sheds, green open places offering pasture for oxen, horses, camels, donkeys, and goats, in motley confusion, deep hollows containing ponds overgrown . . . the people in all varieties of costume, from the naked slave up to the most gaudily dressed Arab,— all formed a most animated and exciting scene." - Heinrich Barth, (1821-1865), T[i]ravels and Discoveries in North and Central Africa: Being a Journal of an Expedition Undertaken under the Auspices of H.B.M.’s Government in the Years 1849-1855[/i], Vol. 2, pp. 97, 99, 101-3

I found another, better picture of Barth's drawing of the view of the city of Timbuktu from a rooftop (in the 1850s), from a better website:

[img]http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/africa/barth/barth8.jpg[/img]

“Timbúktu from the Terrace of the Traveller’s House”

"In order to obviate the effect of this want of exercise as much as possible, to enjoy fresh air and at the same time to become more familiar with the principal features of the town, through which I was not allowed to move about at pleasure, I ascended as often as possible the terrace of my house. This afforded an excellent view over the northern quarters of the town. On the north was the massive mosque of Sánkoré, which had just been restored to its former grandeur through the influence of the Sheik el Bakáy, and gave the whole place an imposing character. . . . [T]owards the east the view extended over a wide expanse of the desert, and towards the south the elevated mansions of the Ghadámsíye merchants were visible. The style of the buildings was various. I could see clay houses of different characters, some low and unseemly, others rising with a second story in front to greater elevation, and making even an attempt at architectural ornament, the whole being interrupted by a few round huts of matting. The sight of this spectacle afforded me sufficient matter of interest, although, the streets being very narrow, only little was to be seen of the intercourse carried on in them. . . . At the same time I became aware of the great inaccuracy which characterises the view of the town as given by M. Caillié. . . . the only error being that in his representation the whole town seems to consist of scattered and quite isolated houses, while, in reality, the streets are entirely shut in, as the dwellings form continuous and uninterrupted rows. - Heinrich Barth (1821-1865), Travels and Discoveries in North and Central Africa: Being a Journal of an Expedition Undertaken under the Auspices of H.B.M.’s Government in the Years 1849-1855, Vol. 4, pp. 440-42

[img]http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/africa/denham/denham9.jpg[/img]

"Lancers of the Sultan of Begharmi"

"They were attended by more than a dozen slaves, bearing presents for us, King George, and the consul at Tripoli. I had applied for a lebida (horse covering), after seeing those taken from the Berghamis: the sheikh now sent a man, clothed in a yellow wadded jacket, with a scarlet cap, and mounted on the horse taken from the Berghamis, on which the sultan's oldest son rode. He was one of the finest horses I had seen; and covered with a scarlet cloth, also wadded." - Narrative of Travels and Discoveries in Northern and Central Africa, in the Years 1822, 1823, and 1824

The Baguirmi kingdom was located in Chad, for anyone wondering.

[img]http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/africa/denham/denham7.jpg[/img]

"A Favorite of the Seraglio Accompanying a Military Expedition"

"Close in the rear of the maherhies follow the eunuchs and the harem; the sheikh takes but three wives, who are mounted, astride, on small trained horses, each led by a boy-slave, or eunuch, — their heads and figures completely enveloped in brown silk bornouses, and a eunuch riding by the side of each. The sultan of Bornou has five times as many attendants, and his harem is three times as numerous: he is attended, also, by men bearing trumpets (frumfrum), of hollow wood, ten and twelve feet long; with these a kind of music is kept up." - Narrative of Travels and Discoveries in Northern and Central Africa, in the Years 1822, 1823, and 1824

[img]http://libweb5.princeton.edu/visual_materials/maps/websites/africa/denham/denham6.jpg[/img]

"Arrival at Mora. The Capital of Mandara"

"Through an open space, or break in the wood, I had this day seen part of the Mandara hills . . . We were now but a few miles from the capital of Mandara . . . At about a mile from this town, we saw before us the sultan of Mandara, surrounded by about five hundred horsemen, posted on a rising ground ready to receive us . . . Different parties now charged up to the front of our line, and wheeling suddenly around, charged back again to the sultan. These people were finely dressed in Soudan tobes of different colours; dark blue, and striped with yellow and red; bornouses of coarse scarlet cloth; with large turbans of white or dark coloured cotton. Their horses were really beautiful, larger and more powerful than any thing found in Bornou, and they managed them with great skill. The sultan's guard was composed of thirty of his sons, all mounted on very superior horses, clothed in striped silk tobes; and the skin of the tiger-cat and leopard forming their shabracks, which hung fully over their horses' haunches. After these had returned to their station in front of the sultan, we approached at full speed in our turn, halting with the guard between us and the royal presence." - Dixon Denham (1786-1828), Narrative of Travels and Discoveries in Northern and Central Africa, in the Years 1822, 1823, and 1824


Mandara is in northern Cameroon, for anyone who was wondering where that is.