“Madam Yoko or Mammy Yoko (ca. 1849–1906) was a leader of the Mende people in Sierra Leone. Combining advantageous lineage, shrewd marriage choices and the power afforded her from the secret Sande society, Yoko became a leader of considerable influence. She expanded the Mende Kingdom and at the time of her death, she was the ruler of the vast Kpa Mende Confederacy.” Source: Wikipedia
Vintage postcards, circa 1900, author’s collection.
Hand-coloured vintage postcard, circa 1910, publisher E.H. , Thies, Senegal. Both ladies wear indigo dyed boubou, one has a strip woven indigo pagne, the other a stitch and tied resist example. The lady on the left has a fine embroidered resist shawl around her shoulders and across her lap.
Vintage postcard: "Fanti Women in Full Dress" Photographer Jacob Vitta, Takwa, Ghana, circa 1910
“Trader from Cayor”, circa 1910, photographer Edmond Fortier. Indigo resist dyed robe.
“Allioune Sô, chief of the Fulani of Sine”, circa 1910, photographer Edmond Fortier.
“Wolof chief and his griot,” circa 1910, photographer Edmond Fortier.
“Fulani chief” circa 1900, photographer Edmond Fortier.
“Thiès. Three elegant men” circa 1900-10, photographer/publisher E.H, Thiès.
“Thiès. Young Wolofs”, circa 1900-10. Photographer/publisher Harimann.
“Dakar (Senegal). Senufo types” circa 1900-10. Photographer/publisher Albaret.
“West Africa. Arrival of a Grand Marabout” circa 1900-20, photographer unknown. A marabout is an Islamic scholar and teacher.
“Dakar. Senegalese man, festival dress” circa 1900. Photographer/publisher P.H. & Co.
“Dakar. Senegalese students.” circa 1900-10. Photographer unknown.
All photos author’s collection.
Vintage postcard, circa 1900, Benin Republic. Caption" Dahomey woman." Photographer Geo Wolber.
Vintage postcard, before 1904. Caption "The King of Sakete", Benin Republic.
Vintage postcard, circa 1900, Benin Republic, caption "A cunning Hausa" - photographer Geo. Wolber.
To mark the recent update of the robe section of our gallery, today I am posting a selection of early images of this style of robe in use. Although this style of robe was made in and closely associated with the nineteenth century Sokoto Caliphate in north Nigeria, taking in Hausa, Nupe and northern Yoruba peoples, such was it’s prestige that it was traded and worn across a much wider expanse of West Africa.
Photographer unknown. Lagos, Nigeria, Circa 1890.
Photographer N. Walwin Holm or J.A. C. Holm, circa 1900-10. The Alake of Abeokuta.
Photographer unknown, Cameroun, early C20th.
Photographer unknown, Burkina Faso, early C20th. the Moro Naba, king of the Mossi, Ouagadougou.
Photographer unknown, early C20th, Tuareg Chief, Zinder, Niger.
Photographer unknown, early C20th. Hausa dance troupe, northern Nigeria.
Photographer unknown, early C2oth, Shendam, east central Nigeria.
Click on the photos to enlarge. Please visit our robe gallery to see our current stock and for more information.
“Féticheuses du Caméléon” – vintage postcard, circa 1900-10. Republic of Benin.
“Chef du Canton d’Abomey” – vintage postcard circa 1900. Republic of Benin.
Former Amazons (redoubtable warriors) – vintage postcard, circa 1900-10, photographer Edmond Fortier. Republic of Benin.
“Group of Fetish chiefs.” – vintage postcard, circa 1900-10, photographer Edmond Fortier. Republic of Benin.
Click on the images to enlarge.
To follow the recent post on appliqué banners from the Kingdom of Dahomey, here is a rare postcard from circa 1900 (Publisher and photographer (?) R.H.A. Prince) showing a partial view of a truly appliqued ceremonial umbrella from the royal court at Abomey.
Click on the photo to enlarge.
Not a great piece of photography or printing but I love this family group portrait postcard I just received today. Photographer and location are unknown but I would guess Mali or Guinea around 1920. What can be seen of the pattern on the blanket hung as a backdrop is quite unusual. Click on the photo to enlarge.
Eyo or Adamorisha, is the signature masquerade performance of Lagos island, still enacted as an annual festival event. Today the performers wear imported white lace robes and veils but images from the early colonial era , above, show a combination of agbada gowns in various colours with locally woven openwork aso oke cloths similar to the two now very rare C19th examples shown above. We can imagine the performers borrowing women’s shawls from wives or mothers for this purpose, and that there participation in the spiritually charged performance added an additional layer of meaning to the textiles.
For more details on the shawls please visit out Nigerian men’s weaving gallery here. For robes see our agbada gallery.
The second masquerade picture above is in the British Museum, ref Af,A51.75. Other images authors collection.
Today’s post marks an update to our gallery of Fanti Asafo flags from Ghana with a focus on two of the remarkable women’s hair styles of the region. [The first three images are from our collection, the fourth courtesy of the Smithsonian Eliot Elisofon archive. ]
Here are the complete flags:
For more details please visit our gallery online here.
All these images are by one of my favourite of the early African studio photographers, A.James, active in Conakry circa 1900-1910. As far as I am aware, and unlike many of his contemporaries, his life and work has as yet not been researched. They are superbly evocative images, combining poise, beauty, fashionable hairstyles, jewellery, locally woven and imported textiles ….
