by Artist (513)
Tabwa Peoples
African
Tabwa figural sculptures typically depict respected ancestors of a Tabwa ruler. During the mid-nineteenth century, several elite Tabwa families who prospered through trade challenged traditional forms of governance and assumed control of regional leadership. These new rulers looked to their ancestry to legitimize their right to lead, invoking and, when necessary, inventing a chiefly lineage through sculptural representations of royal predecessors. The Tabwa developed a religion honoring ancestors, but they used the system to benefit traditional leaders who capitalized on the remembered power of their ancestors to explain their own leadership positions.
African
Female Figure
20th century
Object Type:
Sculpture
Dimensions:
14 5/8 x 4 x 3 1/8 in. (37.15 x 10.16 x 7.94 cm)
Medium and Support:
Wood
Accession Number:
2013.0017.0026
Credit Line:
Gift of Dileep and Martha Mehta
Tabwa figural sculptures typically depict respected ancestors of a Tabwa ruler. During the mid-nineteenth century, several elite Tabwa families who prospered through trade challenged traditional forms of governance and assumed control of regional leadership. These new rulers looked to their ancestry to legitimize their right to lead, invoking and, when necessary, inventing a chiefly lineage through sculptural representations of royal predecessors. The Tabwa developed a religion honoring ancestors, but they used the system to benefit traditional leaders who capitalized on the remembered power of their ancestors to explain their own leadership positions.
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