Author Topic: Help with african shields (Read 5359 times)

Clearco · « **on:** April 18, 2012, 01:27:56 PM »

Hi!
I´m trying to make some generic east african villagers with leather shields but I don´t know what decoration pattern to use. I don´t want to let the shields unpainted but I failed to find any real examples: the only thing I can find in the net when I´m looking for african shield patterns are Zulus and/or Masai shields

Does someone of you have any idea, or pics or something that can help me?
Thanks!

inkydave · « **Reply #1 on:** April 18, 2012, 02:05:17 PM »

2 sites from the same person spring to mind. www.spearcollector.com Lots of great pics of African arms, shields and armour.
Also www.ezakwantu.com Glorious site about african art and crafts. Mostly southern and eastern Africa. Both should provide some great quality images for inspiration.

Plynkes · « **Reply #2 on:** April 18, 2012, 03:36:53 PM »

What kind of shield are they? I mean what shape and such? That would help us narrow things down a bit and come up with some ideas for you.

Clearco · « **Reply #3 on:** April 18, 2012, 04:59:01 PM »

Thanks Inkydave! Great sites! Sadly I haven´t found examples of painted shields that are not masai-like

Quote from: Plynkes on April 18, 2012, 03:36:53 PM

What kind of shield are they? I mean what shape and such? That would help us narrow things down a bit and come up with some ideas for you.

Sorry I forgot to be more specific. I´m making the shield myself out of cardboard.They are oval shaped and not very wide. I want them to look like made of hide.
A bit like these, but slightly narrower:
http://wargamesfoundry.com/historical_ranges/single_packs/darkest_africa/africa/african_tribal_warriors_with_sculpted_hair_da074/?sector_id=12

I wanted to find a pattern to paint it different from the one in the Foundry´s foto

Plynkes · « **Reply #4 on:** April 19, 2012, 09:01:33 AM »

Got a handful of examples:

Lake Victoria pirates:

Shields of undecorated hide (without the hair, unlike the Zulu type). An off-white or light brown colour, most likely. Others in the area painted designs of white, red and black on similar shields, but unfortunately no illustration of the actual pattern.

Sagara:

Either left plain like the ones above, or painted with these black and red stripes. Alternatively divided in half vertically down the middle with one half painted red and the other black.

Gogo:

Gogo shield designs are reported as being in red, yellow, black and white. Later, like many in the area, they adopted the Masai-type shield and patterns.

Clearco · « **Reply #5 on:** April 19, 2012, 10:43:09 PM »

Thanks a lot! Something like that was what I was looking for

By the way, cool fotos of the Gogo. I wanted to try making some of them taking Perry´s plastic mahdist´s body and maybe Warlord Zulus´heads, but in these pictures they don´t look like I had imagine

I had only seen this picture, where they are bearing no shield at all...

...so I though I could use this kind of shield [below] (using the mahdist´s one with minor changes) because I thought it could be similar...And I was totally wrong

:

inkydave · « **Reply #6 on:** April 20, 2012, 01:13:04 AM »

Have 1 pic of some waGogo on my laptop. From 1909. They are going to a witchcraft trial. Masai-ish type shields.

Plynkes · « **Reply #7 on:** April 20, 2012, 09:00:20 AM »

They had adopted some Masai fashions by the 1880s. The pics I posted represent them in the 1860s, when they were still using their traditional type of shield, the sort Clearco was interested in. As well as a love of feather headdresses, they exhibited a bewildering array of daft haircuts, according to explorers' accounts, so the Foundry figures with sculpted hair would fit in a Gogo force quite well, if you gave them Masai shields and/or the sort we have been discussing.

Kingscarbine · « **Reply #8 on:** April 20, 2012, 12:51:41 PM »

I also need some help here. What were the most common shield types south of the Nyassa (lake area included)?

Plynkes · « **Reply #9 on:** April 20, 2012, 01:28:39 PM »

Quote from: Kingscarbine on April 20, 2012, 12:51:41 PM

I also need some help here. What were the most common shield types south of the Nyassa (lake area included)?

Zulu type, I should say. There were loads of migrants from the Mfecane knocking about in this region. Check out these fine fellows encountered by Livingstone on the Zambesi:

He calls them "Landeen or Zulus" and said they exacted heavy yearly tribute from the local Portuguese (Landeen is explained as a term used by the Portuguese for any tribe of Zulu origin).

Kololo used Zulu-type shields, too.

Clearco · « **Reply #10 on:** April 20, 2012, 02:31:52 PM »

Cool WaGogo pics, thanks!
Do you think I can combine the fabric garments of the latter photos with the early traditional shields? I want to make an early force but I wanted to use Perry mahdists as a base for the body (only the bodies without trousers, of course, and using the arms without sleeves), so i couldn´t make the fur clothing:

The other option is to make the people of the second foto I posted: fabric clothing, kind-of-Beja-shield...Any clue which tribe it could be? I only know they live in Kondoa...

By the way, it looks like all people in east-africa were copying zulus/ngoni or masai by the end of XIX century

Kingscarbine · « **Reply #11 on:** April 20, 2012, 03:23:20 PM »

Thanks Plynkes,

The Landeens (Landins in Portuguese) or Tsongas of southern Mozambique are also known as the "Northern Zulus" (Shangaan). The name comes from their language xilandi. The Mfecane influenced lots of tribes in the area and by the mid 19th c. it's probable most used the Zulu type shield. Were there any exceptions?