134
Yaka: Power Figures
Henricus Simonis Editions, with text by Gerd
Korinthenberg and photographs by Joerg Schanze
Published in a German-English bilingual version by
Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König, 2019
30 x 23.5 cm, 1678 pages, 266 color photographs
ISBN: 978-3-96098-490-0
Hardcover, 68 euros
This new publication on the ritual statuary of the
Yaka of southwestern Democratic Republic of the
Congo is a valuable contribution to the meager body
of work on the subject. The many African art enthusiasts
with a serious interest in the subject will certainly
be pleased. Concise text by Gerd Korinthenberg offers
information on the main characteristics of Yaka
society and especially on its people’s forms of artistic
expression. Most of the work deals with statuary,
which constitutes a vector of communication with
supernatural forces and is an essential element in
the paraphernalia of the ngaanga, the ritual specialist
who is responsible for maintaining order and harmony
in the community. This richly illustrated work,
conceived of by dealer Henricus Simonis, presents a
vast corpus of statuettes from his collection that all
incorporate charges of magic substances. The abundance
of examples makes certain unique common
denominators stand out: the strongly volumetric construction
of the faces with their turned-up noses, the
lightly accentuated shoulders, and the presence of
the magic charges—essential for protection against
illnesses and to ensure the success of the hunt—that
are either inserted into a cavity in the object or applied
to its surface.
The catalog of objects avoids an overly generalized
presentation of the subject that might convey an erroneous
impression of a homogeneous style, and instead
classifi es works into subgroups (Biteki, Baana
Maphasa, M-mbwoolu, and Phuungu) according to
formal nuances associated with distinctive contexts
of use that are sometimes diffi cult to determine. The
depth and wealth of Yaka art are now fi nally celebrated
with a comprehensive and informative work.
Caravans of Gold, Fragments in Time
Art, Culture, and Exchange across Medieval
Saharan Africa
Edited by Kathleen Bickford Berzock
Published in English by Princeton University Press,
2019
9 3/4 x 11 inches, 312 pages, 192 color illustrations
ISBN: 978-0-6911826-8-1
Hardcover, 65 dollars
The Sahara Desert was a thriving crossroads of exchange
for West Africa, North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe
in the medieval period. Fueling this exchange was
West African gold, prized for its purity and used for
minting currencies and adorning luxury objects such as
jewelry, textiles, and religious objects.
This book and the exhibition it accompanies draw
upon the latest archaeological discoveries and art historical
research to construct a compelling look at medieval
trans-Saharan exchange and its legacy. Contributors from
diverse disciplines present case studies that form a rich
portrayal of a distant time. It provides irrefutable evidence
of the key role that Africa played in medieval history
BOOKS
War Art & Ritual
Shields from the Pacifi c
Edited by Bill Evans
Published in English by William Nathanial Evans,
Sydney, 2019
23.5 x 32 cm, 2 volumes of 248 pages each, fully
illustrated
ISBN: 978-1-7330078-1-8
Hardcover in slipcase, 195 euros. Available by mail
order exclusively from Ethnographic Art Books in
Leiden, Librairie Mazarine in Paris, and Vasco & Co.
in Brussels.
Melanesia and Island Southeast Asia are generally
considered separately but in fact are contiguous and
have considerable cultural continuity. In few places is
this more readily apparent than the shields of warriors
of these diverse island cultures. This beautiful twovolume
set is the result of many years of planning by
Sydney-based collector and art dealer Bill Evans. In the
course of its development, he identifi ed 140 previously
unpublished shields in public and private collections in
Australia, New Zealand, and Indonesia, and they are
reproduced in these volumes as full-page plates with
details and supporting fi eld photos. Informative essays
by experts in specifi c fi elds go in depth, casting additional
light onto their particular subjects, which range
from dance shields of Java and Bali to war shields
from Borneo, New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands.
Contributors include Andrew Tavarelli, who provides
a general introduction; Steven Alpert writing on the
Dayak; Harry Beran, Barry Craig, and Natalie Wilson
writing on various aspects of Papua New Guinea;
Robyn Maxwell on the legacy of the Majapahit; and
Kevin Conru on the Solomon Islands. These two richly
illustrated volumes will be a benefi t to any library,
whether specialized or general.