Since antiquity, caryatids strike our imagination
Greek and Roman sculptors used this symbolism extensively
Etymology
According to Vitruvius, a Roman architect who lived in the 1st century BC, their name comes from the town of Karyes (near Sparta). The latter having allied itself with the Persians, the inhabitants were exterminated in -368 by the other Greeks, and their women, renowned for their strength and their beauty, reduced to slavery and condemned to carry the heaviest burdens.
But caryatids as architectural elements existed long before this event.
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In black Africa too, caryatids are very popular
They can be the basis of a neckrest, a drum, a divination cup, a stool.
It can be observed in particular among the Dogon of Mali, the Senufo of Côte d'Ivoire, the Baga of Guinea, the Yoruba of Nigeria, the Bamileke of Cameroon. Also in Central Africa, among the Yaka, the Tshokwe, the Mangbetu, the Songye, the Hemba, and of course among the Luba
The oldest known seats of the Luba were not figurative, they consisted of two trays connected by four uprights, (De Grunne, p7; Van Wassenhove, p52)
It seems that the golden age of caryatids began in the 19th century
Caryatid stools LUBA
Old plaster reproduction of a stool by the Master of Buli *
Stools are for the Luba the most important symbols of political power
Their local name is Kipona, or Kihona, or Lupona.
For Francois Neyt, They make the link between the power of the chief and that of the ancestors and the geniuses
According to Mary Nooter Roberts, seats stimulate "local memory", they locate power and memory in space
The appellation of throne is relevant since their use is essential to the enthronement of the monarch (Daniel Hourdé, Atlanteans and caryatids).
The LUBA empire was a constellation of small kingdoms and chiefdoms of Luba or "Lubaised" peoples, with very different styles from region to region
Thus, seven style centers have been referenced by François Neyt
Exceptional LUBA stool
Eastern LUBA Caryatid Stool
Luba Kanyok Stool
Luba Shankadi Stool
BIBLIOGRAPHY - BIBLIOGRAPHY:
- LUBA, Visions of Africa, Editions 5 Continents, Mary Nooter Roberts and Allen F. Roberts, 2006
- MEMORY, Luba Art and the Making of History, Mary Nooter Roberts, 1996
- THE MASTER OF BULI, Isolated master or "workshop", Essay of catalog raisonné Hemba, Luba, Claude-Henri Pirat, Tribal Arts, the world of tribal art N°10, Summer 1996
- Headquarters of Central Africa, Donatienne Van Wassenhove, Tervuren, Royal Museum for Central Africa, 1996
- Design in Africa. To sit, to lie down and to dream, Christiane Falgayrettes-Leveau, Viviane Baeke, Christiane Owusu-Sarpong, Rahim Danto Barry, Joëlle Busca, Éditions Dapper, 2012.
Read also
Lupona (Royal Stool) Kayumba-Museka (Caryatid Stool), Adenike Cosgrove, www.imodara.com
According to Sotheby's (Sotheby's Paris 30/11/10) only 6 seats of this type have been listed
FRANÇAIS
Greek and Roman sculptors regularly used this symbolism
Etymology
According to Vitruvius, a Roman architect who lived in the 1st century BC, their name comes from the town of Karyes (near Sparta). The latter having allied itself with the Persians, the inhabitants were exterminated in -368 by the other Greeks, and their women, renowned for their strength and their beauty, reduced to slavery and condemned to carry the heaviest burdens.
But caryatids as architectural elements existed long before this event.
-------
In black Africa too, caryatids are very popular
They can be the basis of a neckrest, a drum, a divinatory cup, a stool.
It is observed in particular among the Dogon of Mali, the Senoufo of Côte d'Ivoire, the Baga of Guinea, the Yoruba of Nigeria, the Bamileke of Cameroon. Also in Central Africa, among the Yaka, the Tshokwe, the Mangbetu, the Songye, the Hemba, and of course among the Luba
The oldest known seats of the Luba were not figurative, they consisted of two trays connected by four uprights, (De Grunne, p7; Van Wassenhove, p52)
It seems that the golden age of caryatids began in the 19th century
LUBA Cariatid stools
Old plaster reproduction of a "Master of Buli" stool *
Stools are for the Luba the most important symbols of political power
Their local name is Kipona, or Kihona, or Lupona.
For François Neyt, They make the link between the power of the chief and that of the ancestors and geniuses
According to Mary Nooter Roberts, seats stimulate "local memory", they locate power and memory in space
The appellation of throne is relevant since their use is essential to the enthronement of the monarch (Daniel Hourdé, Atlanteans and caryatids).
The LUBA empire was a constellation of small kingdoms and chiefdoms of Luba or "Lubaised" peoples, with very different styles from region to region
Thus, seven style centers have been referenced by François Neyt
Exceptional LUBA stool
Cariatid stool Eastern LUBA
Luba Kanyok stool
Luba Shankadi stool
BIBLIOGRAPHY - BIBLIOGRAPHY:
- LUBA, Visions of Africa, Editions 5 Continents, Mary Nooter Roberts and Allen F. Roberts, 2006
- MEMORY, Luba Art and the Making of History, Mary Nooter Roberts, 1996
- THE MASTER OF BULI, Isolated master or "workshop", Essay of catalog raisonné Hemba, Luba, Claude-Henri Pirat, Tribal Arts, the world of tribal art N°10, Summer 1996
- Headquarters of Central Africa, Donatienne Van Wassenhove, Tervuren, Royal Museum for Central Africa, 1996
- Design in Africa. To sit, to lie down and to dream, Christiane Falgayrettes-Leveau, Viviane Baeke, Christiane Owusu-Sarpong, Rahim Danto Barry, Joëlle Busca, Éditions Dapper, 2012.
read also
Lupona (Royal Stool) Kayumba-Museka (Caryatid Stool), Adenike Cosgrove, www.imodara.com