Description
This print shows a view on a Griot of Senegambia (Senegal). A griot is a West African historian, storyteller, praise singer, poet, and/or musician. Instead of writing history books, oral historians tell stories of the past that they have memorized. Sometimes there are families of historians, and the oral histories are passed down from one generation to the next. Telling a story out loud allows the speaker to use poetic and musical conventions that entertain an audience. This has contributed to many oral histories surviving for hundreds of years without being written down.
The griot is a repository of oral tradition and is often seen as a leader due to their position as an advisor to members of the royal family. As a result of the former of these two functions, they are sometimes called bards. They also act as mediators in disputes.
Made by after an anonymous artist.
Medium: Etching with original hand colouring on wove paper.
Sheet size: 23.5 x 34.5 cm (9.25 x 13.58 inch). Image size: 15.7 x 22 cm. (6.18 x 8.66 inch).
Condition: good, given age. Fold in lower left corner. Minor creases. Imprint of a circle. General age-related toning and/or occasional minor defects from handling. Please study scan carefully.
GRIOT-STORYTELLER-POET-ORAL HISTORY-SENEGAL-WEST AFRICA | RBOS-A9-32
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
This attractive print was published in ca 1820.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.