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Ekaale Lowasa making an Akalach decorative belt

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posted on 2023-11-30, 18:56 authored by Joseph Ekidor Nami
In the present day, akalach belts are worn by many women at celebratory events, most notably weddings, and sometimes at Asapan ceremonies. Here, almost a month after having started making one, Ekaale Lowasa continues the process of sewing small plastic beads onto a strip of plastic from a jerrycan.

Funding

Endangered Material Knowledge Programme

History

Session

C010

Rights owner

Samuel Frederick Derbyshire

Cultural group

Turkana

Participants

Ekaale Lowasa

Country

Kenya

Place

Nakurio, Turkana

Item/object

Akalach belt

Social group setting

Craftsperson at work alone

Location

Home

Temporality

This object took a year to make, although if there was an urgent need for one it could easily be completed within a month or two. The akalach is generally considered to have replaced older forms of decorative belt, which were comprised of skin and ostrich eggshell beads. It performs a similar role to these older belts in many contexts.

Date of creation

2020-06-02

Unique ID

2019LG02-C010-0719

Usage metrics

    Endangered Material Knowledge Programme

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