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by the animal, but a manifestation of its essence. An expert 98 on the Lele, she has attributed to the “pangolin cult” a central, defi ning role in the worldview of this people, referring to the “anomalies” that unite all opposites: a mammal that is like a fi sh (scales), but also like a bird, for it can live both on the ground and in the air (in the treetops), as well as in the water. The border between bush and village (nature and culture) is also crossed, as well as that between categories of spirits. And the difference between humans and animals becomes blurred, for the pangolin is the only small mammal to bear one offspring at a time, as women normally do. All in all, the pangolin is an all-embracing metaphor that “achieves a union of opposites, which is a source of power for good.” Its divine nature is demonstrated by “the seeming voluntary submission of the animal to its own death,” for “like Abraham’s ram in the thicket and like Christ, the pangolin is spoken of as a voluntary victim” (probably because of its passive manner of self-defense); “it is not caught, but rather it comes to the villages,” since it is usually found by chance (Douglas 1966: 198–210; 1975 a: 47–62; b: 259–272). For decades, Douglas has repeatedly described these and other aspects of the “pangolin cult” in many publications. When Ioan Lewis (1991) described these conclusions as purely speculative and criticized the lack of ethnographic evidence, Douglas explained her interpretation of the pangolin symbolism as part of a “synthesis” (de Heusch, Douglas, Lewis 1993: 162). The Tabwa of D. R. Congo say that “the king of the beasts is not the lion, but the pangolin.” A spirit medium told Allen Roberts that his beaded headband is called Pangolin, not only because of the triangular pattern that looks like pangolin scales, but also because of the bundle of pangolin scales fi xed to his forehead. This bundle is intended to protect the “seat of prophecy” and to keep evil spirits and sorcerers away from the process of divination (Roberts 1995: 83). The variety of ideas connected with the pangolin was complemented in the kingdom of Benin by an association with warrior traditions. The warriors were impressed by its protective scaled armor, the signifi cance of which was revealed to them from the sixteenth century onward when they saw the mail coats worn by the Portuguese soldiers. In this respect the images of Oba Ozolua “the conqueror,” who ruled c. 1481–1504, are instructive. He is said to have been extremely bellicose and to have worn a long protective tunic made of iron, reminiscent of Portuguese mail,9 though here the garment is thickly covered with pangolin scales (fi g. 11), clearly identifi able as Manis tricuspis (Blackmun 2007: 164f; Plankensteiner 2007: pl. 219, 220S, 438f). However, the features relating to the pangolin mostly served as attributes not of the king himself but of certain high offi ces. Thus, the chiefs of Benin City still wear garments and cone-shaped hats made of red fl annel at the annual igue festival (fi g. 12). In both cases the cloth is sewn onto a base in the form of overlapping zigzag strips that give the effect of pangolin scales (Plankensteiner 2007: 97, 127, 357). The original garment made of real pangolin skin and scales was replaced by a costume made of imported red fl annel only in the twentieth century (Ben-Amos 1976: 245; 1980: 73; Ben-Amos Girshick 1995: 98f; Plankensteiner 2007: 127). While marching past, the city dignitaries raise their eben swords as a ceremonial greeting. Their costume symbolizes a threat, but the raised ceremonial sword is an expression of their loyalty to the king (Nevadomsky & Airihenbuwa 2007: 127f). Though reduced to two people, this scene is recorded on an eighteenth-century relief plaque (fi g. 13). According to informants, in the old kingdom of Benin, the leopard is considered to be a metaphor of the king and the pangolin of the city chiefs, for just as the leopard cannot attack a rolled-up pangolin, the city chiefs are the only ones who can stand up against the king. “The pangolin is the only animal the leopard cannot kill” (Ben-Amos Girshick 1995: 98). Another example of the pangolin being associated with royalty, and especially with rainmaking powers, comes from the Lobedu in northern Transvaal. The queen, who is also the rain priestess, needs fat, skin, and scales from a pangolin for the medicine with which she can make rain. Anyone who fi nds a pangolin must bring it to the royal court (Krige & Krige 1943: 274; Maberly 1954: 281f). Headdresses made from the skins of the long-tailed pangolin and of the white-bellied pangolin were worn by male offi ceholders in the Congo area as badges of their position (fi gs. 14 and 15). Prominent among these are headdresses made for members of the Lega bwami society (fi g. 16). FIG. 11 (right): Relief plaque: Oba Ozolua in a robe of pangolin scales with four attendants. Edo, Kingdom of Benin, Nigeria 16th/17th century. Ex Georg Haas. Brass. 39.5 x 39 cm. Weltmuseum, Vienna, inv. VO 64717, acquired 1899. KHM-Museumsverband. FIG. 12 (below): Joseph Nevadomsky, Procession of town dignitaries at the igue (New Year) festival, wearing red gowns that imitate pangolin scales. Kingdom of Benin, Nigeria. 1978. See fi g. 13. Courtesy of the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, inv. 2012.013. FEATURE


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