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Making a grinding stone or phaotoma

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Detail view of the stone selected to become a grinding stone. When a woman requires a new mortar, she commissions a group of men to go to the forest to get it in exchange for traditional sorghum beer, which will be consumed collectively when they return. This is one of the best examples of the reciprocity economy still widely practised by the Opo.

Funding

Endangered Material Knowledge Programme

History

Session

D06

Rights owner

Incipit-CSIC

Title alt

Selecting and hauling stone for making a grinding stone

Cultural group

Opo

Country

Ethiopia

Place

Akula, Gambela

Item/object

Phaotoma

Materials

Stone

Cultural context/event

Resource collection

Social group setting

Controlled group

Location

Forest

Date of creation

2021-08-08

Unique ID

2019LG07-D06-0972