Portrait of Takam, chief of Litim with a friend
B&W photographic print. 'Takam, chief of Litim (with hat) and a friend. Takam wears a bear's fur 'sweat-wig' decorated with boar's tusks, and carries a dao, decorated with a long fringe of hair, tucked into his waistband at the back. Both men wear boar's tusk necklets decorated with pieces of co...
| Date(s) of creation: |
1919-1923 |
|---|---|
| Level: |
Item |
| Format: | Archive |
| Main author: | Mills; James Philip (1890-1960); colonial administrator and anthropologist |
| URL: |
http://digital.soas.ac.uk/LOAA004679 |
| URL Description: |
Digital version available online at SOAS Digital Collections |
| Summary: |
B&W photographic print. 'Takam, chief of Litim (with hat) and a friend. Takam wears a bear's fur 'sweat-wig' decorated with boar's tusks, and carries a dao, decorated with a long fringe of hair, tucked into his waistband at the back. Both men wear boar's tusk necklets decorated with pieces of conch shell, denoting status gained through warfare, and necklaces of beads and long pieces of worked shell. Their cane wristlets are closely sewn with lines of cowrie shells. Their small loincloths are also sewn with cowrie shells in a cross pattern. Mills notes that Takim's friend had "lost some fingers in the War". He may have been one of the Naga carriers recruited to serve in France during the Great War 1914-18. They had volunteered with alacrity, hoping to bring back heads and thus acquire the status of head-hunters. They were disappointed in this, but all returned safely to their villages.' |
|---|---|
| Main author: | Mills; James Philip (1890-1960); colonial administrator and anthropologist |
| Extent: |
1 photograph |
| Note: |
Machetes Hats Wigs Kings, queens, rulers, etc. Naga (South Asian people) Ethnic group: Naga Ethnic group: Sumi Naga |
| Access status: |
Open |
| Copyright: | Copyright held by J.P. Mills |
| Language: | No linguistic content |
| Scripts: |
Unwritten |
| Physical description: |
9.5 x 7 cm |
| Copies: | Digital version available online at SOAS Digital Collections |
| Format: | Archive |