Maternity Figure

There is a tremendous diversity of stylistic convention found among the Bantu peoples of Eastern Tanzania. There have been some attempts to reconcile these stylistic modalities in terms of assigning each ethnic group a particular style based on a few examples collected during the German colonial period in Tanzania.

It is best in such cases to ascribe the attribution of figures such as this not to one ethnic group but to an area or cluster of peoples or to simply use a regional approach, such as a ‘Northeastern Tanzanian shrine figure’ rather than the original attribution of “a Zigua maternity figure’. In truth, we have no real evidence the piece is Zigua. It did however serve in a shrine and is from the general region of Northeastern Tanzania that the Zigua, along with other peoples, inhabit.

The figure itself is exceptionally fine for the region and style. The vast majority of such figures are blocky and poorly carved. This figure is well balanced, and the importance of the female figure is immediately visible based on the size and prominence of the head. The infant is well carved and held lovingly, which is not often depicted with success.

The patinated surface clearly indicates that this piece was in a shrine where offerings were made and that the piece developed an accretion of materials that, while not obscuring the figure in any way, attest to its age and traditional use.

Based on the cult of the Mwana Hiti dolls in the region, it is obvious that maternity is a very important concept among the peoples of Northeastern Tanzania; the image itself perhaps depicting an actual mother of an individual or the spirit of maternal power that could be kept and fostered in a shrine to help and protect an entire family.