Lukasa (memory board)
Mbudye Society, Luba peoples (Democratic Rpublic of the Congo). c. 19th to 20th century C.E. Wood, beads, and metal
More detailed information is conveyed on the front and back of the board. On the lukasa's "inside" surface (the front), human faces represent chiefs, historical figures, and mbudye members. The rectangular, circular, and ovoid elements denote organizing features within the chief's compound and the association's meeting house and grounds. Its "outside" surface displays incised chevrons and diamonds representing the markings on a turtle's carapace.
Form:
Varied in size but small enough to hold
Made of large wood plank with metal and smalls beads of various materials
19th - 20th century Luba People Democratic Republic of Congo
Function:
Used as a way to record and remember important times and events in the Luba People’s society
Important for oral history and story-telling
Alludes to ancestors and deities, recording names
Only specifically trained people can read them
Demonstrates hierarchy and class consciousness, as only the most accomplished and senior members of council could read the memory boards
These people were known as “men of memory”
Readers would hold it in their left hand and trace patterns with their right index finger
Content:
A wooden plank that has metal beads and other beads specifically placed to make patterns in touch in visualization to discuss the history of the Luba People
- Designed specifically to tell a story and remember the past easily for those who are trained to be able to do so
- People in the Luba tribes were specifically trained to read lukasas and their sole job was to remember the oral stories and traditions
- It is hard to keep the stories of the Luba people alive because it is oral tradition and the specific readers are dying and not passing down the stories and losing culture
Context:
At the start of the 1500s the Luba people began to emerge as a powerful nation in central Africa
The People wanted to figure out a way to remember their history so their culture would not be lost
Specific people assigned by the Luba kings were trained to memorize patterns and colors in order to make a Luba and tell the story on it to the people in the Luba Tribes.
This specific one was made between the 19th and 20th century
Cross Cultural Connections:
This type of storytelling relates to the Benin people who had the Benin wall with plaques of patterns that kept historical records of the Benin people
Themes:
Oral Tradition
Storytelling
Maintaining culture
Hierarchy
Language
Record keeping
Sources:
AP Art History Volume 3: Beyond the European Tradition with Global Contemporary
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/africa-ap/a/lukasa-memory-board-luba-peoples
