Acquisition from dark Africa

20 May 2023

Recently we were able to take over some remarkable African tobacco pipes from a long-standing collection in Utrecht. The depicted creation is the most highly decorated of these acquisitions. With its convex shape referring to the gourd and its two figures, the back of which functions as a stem to draw the smoke, this is a fancy design full of fantasy. The maker comes from the Luba people from the Kasai province in Congo-Kinshasa, to be precise the sub-tribe Luba-Hemba. This can be seen in tribal characteristics such as the facial features and headgear. As an oddity, it is typically an article that did better on the souvenir market than among the local smokers. Yet this pipe was a temporary object that was soon exchanged for new creations. Not only because of the complicated design, but especially because of the laborious production method, the production has remained limited. Thanks to these ever-innovative designs, tradition gradually changes and the chain of remarkable creations continues to grow.

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