Chapter 31 Africa

African Architecture and Artists Traditional African architecture was built to be cool and comfortable with the hot African sun. Generally most African buildings were built of mud brick to keep in interior cool, however mud buildings needed to be continuously maintained in the rainy season African artists worked on commission and had guilds which helped promote their elevated profession.

Aerial view of the Great Mosque, Djenne, Mali, Begun 13th century, rebuilt 1906-1907. The Great Mosque of Djenné is the largest mud brick or adobe building in the world and is considered by many architects to be the greatest achievements of the Sudano-Sahelian architectural style with definite Islamic influences.

Beta Giorghis (Church of Saint George), Lalibela, Ethiopia, 13th century. Carved from solid red volcanic rock in the 12th century, it is the most well known and last built of the eleven churches in the Lalibela area, and has been referred to as the ”Eighth Wonder of the World”. There is a small baptismal pool outside of the trench.

Walls and tower, Great Enclosure, Great Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe, 14th century.

African Sculpture Most African sculptures are meant to be portable. Large sculptures are unknown in Africa. Wood is generally the material used for African sculpture as trees were honored. Ivory was used as a sign of rank or prestige Metal shows strength and durability – restricted to royalty Stone sculptures are very rare Figures are generally frontal with full-face and much attention paid to the side. Symmetry is occasionally used, however more talented artists took a varied approach to each side of the objects.

Waist pendant of a Queen Mother, from Benin, Nigeria, ca. 1520 Waist pendant of a Queen Mother, from Benin, Nigeria, ca.1520. Ivory and iron, 9 3/8”high. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, gift of Nelson A. Rockefeller, 1972). Ife Head is widely considered as one of the highest achievements of world art. They are the portrait-like realism of Ife heads. This head probably depicts an Ooni, a ruler of the west African kingdom of Ife that flourished between AD 1100 and 1500. It epitomizes the great medieval civilizations of West Africa of about seven hundred years ago. The head is a little smaller than life-size. It is made out of brass. The shape of the face is an elegant oval, covered with finely incised vertical lines. But it’s facial scarring so perfectly symmetrical that it contains rather than disturbs the feature. It also wears a crown, a high beaded diadem with a striking vertical plume projecting from the top. It has the presence of a ruler imbued with the high serenity of power and it is certainly used for celebrations.

Head of a Queen Mother, from Benin, Nigeria, ca. 1520–1550 Head of a Queen Mother, from Benin, Nigeria, ca. 1520–1550. Bronze, 1’ 3 1/3” high. British Museum, London. Queen Idia, mother of Oba Esigie, king of Benin from the late fifteenth to the early sixteenth century, played a key role in her son's military campaigns against the Igala people, which may have been over control of the Niger waterway. Benin finally won these wars and made the Igala king a vassal of the Oba. A brass head representing Queen Idia was made to be placed in her altar following her death. It is said that Oba Esigie instituted the title of Queen Mother and established the tradition of casting heads of this type in honour of her military and ritual powers. Such heads were placed in altars in the palace and in the Queen Mother's residence.