Lot of 49 Northern Nguni (Zulu, Swazi and Transvaal Ndebele) and Southern Nguni (Xhosa) Beadworks and Jewelry, South Africa

(A) 26 items collected in situ by Grete Mannheim in South Africa in the 1930s
Hanna Baer, Bethesda, by descent from the above
(B) 23 items collected in situ by Carolyn "Carry" Wagner in South Africa in the 1930s
The Robbins Center For Cross Cultural Communication, Washington, D.C., acquired from the above in (A) 1994 and (B) 1991

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1994-2001

The Mannheim-Wagner Collection of South African Beadwork

The present lot includes rare artifacts collected in South Africa in the 1930s by photographer Greta Mannheim and merchant Caroline Wagner who traveled to Natal Province in 1939.  Stylistically, a majority of these artifacts is consistent with material collected in the area inhabited by the Zulu.  Among the Nguni-speaking peoples of South Africa, including the North Nguni (Zulu, Swazi and Transvaal Ndebele) of present-day KwaZulu/Natal and the South Nguni (Xhosa-speaking peoples) of the Eastern Cape, elements of traditional dress and adornment are major forms of artistic expression.  The materials utilized include animal skins, bird feathers and imported materials such as brass or copper, glass beads, cloth and blankets.  By the late 19^thcentury and especially after the British defeat of the Zulu in the Anglo-Zulu War in 1879, the availability of beads through the Natal trade resulted in an increase in the types and regional styles of beaded ornaments.  Today, while these traditions still survive in some rural areas, material from the 1930s is rarely found outside of museums and private collections.

The Zulu wear beaded ornaments on ritual occasions to honor the ancestors but they are more typically worn on secular occasions, including coming of age ceremonies, weddings and other local celebrations.  Beadwork is important during courtship and in preparing the bride for marriage.  It also reflects one’s identity and status within a given community.  Beadwork similarly identifies cultural and political differences among Zulu-speaking peoples in various areas of KwaZulu/Natal.  Traditionally made by women, typical beaded items include necklaces, loin-dresses, waistbands or belts, arm and leg bands and head ornaments.  Children wear simple strands of beads or small loin-aprons, but beadwork generally becomes more complex as young women near marriage age.  Married women also wear beadwork, although the amount decreases with age.

In addition to the variety of regional styles of beadwork in the Zulu area, beaded neckbands and necklaces supporting one or more beaded panels were worn to convey encoded messages by means of colors and combinations of beads used.  Although colors were not assigned specific meanings, associations were attached to specific beads and consequently, messages had to be interpreted rather than translated.  To decipher an intended message, a knowledge and understanding of the community was necessary.

Also included in the collection is a small cloth doll decorated with beads.  These dolls were made by young unmarried women and given to young men as a sign of their interest in being courted.  There are also two sets of earplugs in the collection.  The earlobes of boys and girls were traditionally pierced as part of a rite of passage held prior to puberty. Over time the pierced holes were gradually enlarged to accommodate earplugs of increasing size.  Early examples were small and generally made of ivory or bone.  Later examples were made of soft wood and decorated with plastic mosaic overlays.

Carolee G. Kennedy
Arlington, Virginia, March 2013