Leaf, used for divination ceremonies. For the associated wooden folder and leaves see records 1946.6.83 .1

Collection type: Object
Description: Leaf, used for divination ceremonies. For the associated wooden folder and leaves see records 1946.6.83 .1 - .160 [ASh [OPS move] 29/3/2017]
Long description: Leaf, used for divination ceremonies. The leaf is decorated with a cut out pattern consisting of two crescent shapes set at an angle near to the tip and a rectangle in the centre of the leaf. For the associated wooden folder and leaves see records 1946.6.83 .1 - .160. [ASh [OPS move] 29/3/2017]
Geographical reference: Cameroon
Africa > Central Africa > Cameroon; Bamenda
Cultural groups: Wiya; Luiya
Person: Field collector Mervyn David Waldegrave Jeffreys; PRM source Mervyn David Waldegrave Jeffreys
Date / Period: Date made: Before 1946
Date collected: By 1946
Acquisition information: Donated: 1946
Materials and processes: Material Plant Leaf, Process Incised, Process Openwork
Dimensions: Depth: max 1 mm, Width: max 61 mm, Length: max 75 mm
Object numbers: Accession number: 1946.6.83.131 Other numbers: 132
Research and responses: Additional references provided by David Zeitlyn: Gufler, H. 1999. Witchcraft Beliefs among the Yamba (Cameroon). Anthropos 94, 181-98; Gufler, H. 1996. Yamba Spider Divination. Journal of the Anthropological Society of Oxford (JASO) 26, 43-67. [AP 24/9/2001]
Ambatch is a type of leguminous shrub found through many parts of Africa, including the Sudan; it to between 4 and 6 metres high and grows in river shallows, producing a very light, spongy wood that was often used for rafts and parry shields. Its botanical name is Aeschynomene sp. [source: http://www.probertencyclopaedia.com/B1AB.HTM; RTS 10/1/2005].

Search terms: Specimen, Divination Religion, Plant, Divination Accessory

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