Hunter´s bag

[Martin Lubojacky]

Not a weapon, but interestnig and maybe was part of hunter´s accessories. I would be interested in your opinion - where this nice old bag comes from ? My idea is Maghreb countries or Libya (I think used by Arabs or/and Berbers, not by Touaregs) .... ? Embroided leather, a little bit danaged, shoulder strap is mising, dimensions 39 x 30 cms

[Kurt]

Hi Martin ,

Your assessment is correct Maghreb.
I have seen these bags in Morocco many times .

Best
Kurt

[Freddy]

Does the small bronze belong to this bag ?

If so, I think it's a Sao bronze horseman figure (kotoko) from Chad. This would also give you a clue as to where the bag comes from.

I found this explanation in the ebay guides :

The Kotoko were inheritors of an ancient people known as the Sao who
lived in the southern Lake Chad region as early as the fifth century
B.C. Under external pressures the Sao through time moved into
northwest present day Cameroon settling in the hilly region where the
present day Kotoko claim them as ancestors. Taking up traditions of
other immigrant peoples into their areas the Sao buried their dead in
large urns, a practice seen across a wide region stretching from the
Niger river through Chad, Niger, Nigeria and to the northern regions of
Cameroon. Small mounted figures cast in bronze were made as funerary
offerings or memorials. Mounted warriors rode horses, sometimes camels
and other unknown and imaginative animals. Often there were two riders
mounted on a single animal. As in this example the horses often had
elaborate trappings of harness and saddle and the riders were portrayed
with spear and shield and wearing detailed headdresses, costumes and
jewelry.

Object References:

Lebeuf, J.P. and A. Masson Detourbet, La civilisation du Tchad. 1950.
Lebeuf, J.P, Archeologie tchadienne: les Sao du Cameroun et du Tchad.
1962.
Jansen, G. and J.-G. Gauthier, Ancient Art of the Northern Cameroons:
Sao and Fali. 1973.
J.-P. and A. Lebeuf, Les Arts Anciennes de l’Ouest Africain. 1977

[Martin Lubojacky]

Thank you Kurt and Freddy.
The Kotoko horse does not belong to the bag, I took it as a weight just to keep the bag open (from the shelf which was close - this is my wife´s collection....)
Regards,
Martin