In a landscape of arid grasslands south of the Zambezi River, numerous hunting and gathering populations have existed since the dawn of humanity. Their rock paintings are among the earliest art known-from 25,000 BC. Currently, the distinctive dress of Himba women continues to reflect their attentive use of this environment. Ornaments are made from local materials, with imported shells and beads, but the combination is always coated with layers of ochre from sacred sites.
Lambskin, cowrie shells, glass and metal beads, ochre deposits
Gift of Lisa Fanning
2003.107
Provenance: Collected by Lisa Fanning from the artists in Ovinyango, Etosha National Park, Namibia
Not currently on view
Seattle Art Museum respectfully acknowledges that we are on Indigenous land, the traditional territories of the Coast Salish people. We honor our ongoing connection to these communities past, present, and future.
