The « Caravelle & Caravane » Collection
A collection celebrating how Africa has always been connected to the rest of the World.
Since time immemorial, bags of beads have been sent to African Empires and Kingdom, on the backs of camels – Caravans, and in ships, including, in the 15th century, Portuguese Caravels.
Reliefs on the mortuary temple of the female Pharaoh, Hatshepsut, show the export of glass beads, by boat, to the land of Punt.
Glass beads manufactured during the Romain Empire and in Medieval times in the Middle East and in Persia reached the Sahara with the Caravans and have been found in archaeological sites in Tanzania.
Archeological digs and glass analyses have recently revealed the importance of such exchanges: 4th to the 17th century Iranian beads were uncovered in Komi Saleh (Mauritania), Kissi (Burkina Faso), Gao (Mali)…; 10th -17th century Indian and South Asian beads have been found in Essouk (Mali), Zanzibar (Tanzania), and the Kingdom of Zimbabwe (Botswana and South Africa). In Kilwa, Tanzania, 13th to 15th century Chinese beads were part of the treasury.
European beads appear in the 16th century, from Italy, Bohemia, France, Bavaria, as evidenced by the royal tombs of Kindozi Mbanza Nsundi in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Large quantities of beads are still produced in India and China, for export to Africa on container ships.
This collection of unique pieces brings back the souvenirs of those ancient trade routes, with antique and modern beads of glass, coral, amber, stone…, all sourced in African markets in the 1990s.
La collection « Caravelle & Caravane »
Une collection qui témoigne de l’ancienneté des connections entre l’Afrique et les autres continents. En effet, depuis les temps les plus reculés, des cargaisons de perles sont envoyées dans les royaumes et empires d’Afrique, à dos de chameaux – Caravanes – et par voies maritimes, dont au 15eme siècle, les Caravelles portugaises.
Les fouilles archéologiques et analyses de verre ont permis d’éclaircir l’ampleur de ces échanges : perles d’Iran, du 7ème au 10ème siècle – Kombi Saleh, Mauritanie ; Kissi , Burkina Faso-; perles d’Inde et d’Asie du Sud du 10 au 17 ème siècle - Essouk, Mali, Zanzibar, Tanzanie, Royaume de Zimbabwe au Botswana, Afrique du Sud - perles chinoises du 13ème au 15ème siècle - Kilwa, Tanzanie -. Les perles d’Europe apparaissent à partir du 16ème - perles de Venise, de Bohème, de France et de Bavière dans les tombes royales de Kindoki Mbanza Nsundi en RDC.
Une collection évocatrice de ces anciennes voies d’échanges, crée à partir de perles anciennes et contemporaines en verre, pierre, corail, ambre... chinées sur les marchés d’Afrique dans les années 1990. Une collection de pièces uniques et limité à 50 pièces.