Igbo women at pot firing field, Mgbom village, Afikpo Village-Group, Nigeria

Object Details

Local Numbers: O-73/1951-1953 EEPA 2000-070066
General: Title source: Dr. Simon Ottenberg, Professor Emeritus of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA.

Archival Repository: Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives, National Museum of African Art

Collection Rights: Permission to reproduce images from the Eliot Elisofon Photographic Archives must be obtained in advance. The collection is subject to all copyright laws.

Scope and Contents: This photograph was taken by Dr. Simon Ottenberg while conducting field research at Afikpo village-group, southeastern Nigeria, from December 1951 to March 1953.; Original title reads, "Women firing pots the traditional way, piling them together, covering them with dry long grass and lghting this. Mgbom village. These are good-sized waterpots. Some of them will be used locally, others will be shipped by canoe down the Cross River from Ndibe Beach for sale, generally to Calabar. Women are scantily dress for the firing. Piling the grass over the pots." [Ottenberg field research notes, O Series, December 1951-March 1953].; "Many compounds have a pot-burning field (ohoho) under the direction of the senior women of the compound. pot firing is done on an open circular ground area behind the quarters, using dried grass and brush. The burning grounds are forbidden to men by lineage rules, and women until recently did not wear cloths during the firing." [Ottenberg, 1968: Double Descent in an African Society; The Afikpo Village-Group, Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1968].

Collection Restrictions: Use of original records requires an appointment. Contact Archives staff for more details.

Other Archival Materials: Simon Ottenberg Papers are located at the National Anthropological Archives, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.