Giepert 1 Caroline Giepert Prof. Spieth ARTH 4440 2 November 2015 Byeri: Ancestral Worship Among the Fang One of the most widely studied and recorded African ethnic groups is that of the Fang, who lived in areas of modern-day Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, and...
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Giepert 1 Caroline Giepert Prof. Spieth ARTH 4440 2 November 2015 Byeri: Ancestral Worship Among the Fang One of the most widely studied and recorded African ethnic groups is that of the Fang, who lived in areas of modern-day Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, and Cameroon. This group is one of the largest, composed of up to two million people, split into multiple sub-groups.1 Since the area the Fang occupy is in the Congo River Basin region, they have access to a multitude of raw materials provided by the lush, dense rainforest, such as wood, bamboo, and plant fibers.2 For this reason, the Fang possess an abundant art tradition which has been analyzed and collected by many European explorers. The Fang peoples maintained strong ties with their ancestors, as evidenced by their crafting of byeri statuettes. Since the Fang were a migratory tribe, some scholars have speculated that byeri were created as a type of mobile altar for ancestor worship so that the deceased would not be left behind.3 Thes
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