Nyangatom Headrest 04 The carving of the male

The carving of the male head on this bowl

1950 each vessels is unique and has beautiful signs of ageing

These shields are hand-carved from one piece of indigenous wood and hand-finished with beads

Each mask represents a male or a female and would have traditionally been worn on the head during ceremonies

with particular emphasis being placed on the character of the piece and the balancing of perfection and imperfection

Nyangatom Headrest 04 The carving of the maleThis headrest comes from Kenya, hand carved from one piece of indigenous wood. Headrests were a necessity for the North Western nomadic pastoral tribes of Kenya as they have a cultural custom of wearing elaborate coiffures which the headrests helped to preserve whilst sleeping amongst other benefits of protecting against dust and insects. They are considered to be one of the most important of their few possessions that they travelled with. The