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Zaire 1938/39: Photographic documents on the arts of the Yaka, Pende, Tshokwe and Kuba
Hans Himmelheber
1993
Hard cover 

164 pages 
Published by Museum Rietberg Zürich

194 b/w illustrations. The field photographs published here were taken more than 50 years ago - from May 7, 1938 to July 14, 1939. At that time, Dr. Hans Himmelheber, a 30-year-old ethnologist, had embarked on a two-year journey through Africa after two research trips to the Ivory Coast and an extended stay in Alaska. His travels began in Cameroon and led him through Gabon to what was then the Belgian Congo. He initially traveled in the west of the country among the Yaka, Suku, and Tshokwe peoples, then among the Kuba and Leie, and finally among the Pende, Biombo, and marginalized groups of the Luba, the Songye and Binji. The purpose of this journey was to gather information on artistic practices and material resources. Despite the outbreak of war, the first findings were published as early as 1939 and 1940 in the Belgian journal "Brousse," the then newly founded journal of the "Amis de l'Art indigène du Congo Beige" (Friends of Indigenous Art of the Congo Beige). Further information was also included in the 1960 book "Negerkunst und Negerkünstler" (Negro Art and Negro Artists). Extensive collections from this expedition found their way into European ethnographic museums, primarily in Basel and Geneva. During the war, part of his own collection in Karlsruhe was destroyed by fire, along with field notes and diaries, with the exception of two photo lists and the original negatives, of which only one roll of film and several individual negatives were lost. The documented objects donated to the Musée de la Vie Indigène in Leopoldville (now the National Museum of Zaire) in 1939 have all vanished without a trace. As in almost every part of the world, the developments of recent decades in Zaire, with the integration of the population into global trade and the general "modernization" of the country, have led to a leveling of local cultures. The traditional, historically significant ethnic groups of Zaire have changed their appearance considerably over the past fifty years. Therefore, photographs depicting lifestyles, customs, material possessions, and traditional dress at the time of the beginning of acculturation are of particular value as a source for ethnologists and, soon, presumably also for the people of Zaire today. And since the peoples of southwestern Zaire—in the sub-equatorial savannah region—produced exceptionally high-quality tools, and since a rich and diverse artistic tradition flourished, to which we owe some of Africa's most beautiful works of art, it seemed appropriate to publish the photographs from this research trip as comprehensively as possible. 

Language: German and English. 

Name sticker of the previous owner on the inside of the cover (see photo 6).

Height = 22.5 cm
Width = 21.1 cm
Weight = 665 g


In very good condition. 
For a good impression, please watch all photos carefully.


Insured shipping.
Can also be collected in Ghent, Belgium.

Africa, Art history - Quantity: 1 - Photo book

Hans Himmelheber - Zaire 1938/39 - 1993

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