mail_outline sales@mediastorehouse.com
Ole Senteu Simel, grandson of the famous Msai Laibon Mbatian (after which the highest peak of Mount Kenya is named), was the most respected laibon of the Msai until his death in 1986
Msai warriors draw water from a deep well. The depth of wells is measured by the number of men required to bring water to the cattle troughs at the top of them
A Msai warrior with his long braids and body coated with red ochre mixed with animal fat. He has put ochre dust round his eyes to enhance his appearance ready for a dance
Detail of a Msai warriors ear ornaments and other beaded or metal adornments. The Msai practice of piercing ears in adolescence and gradually elongating the lobes is gradually dying out
A Msai warrior in full battle cry, his long-bladed spear at the ready
Kenya, Kajiado, lpartimaro. Two Msai warriors in full regalia. The headress of the man on the left is made from the mane of a lion while the one on the right is fringed with black ostrich feathers
Two Msai warriors in full regalia. The headdress of the man on the left is made from the mane of a lion while the one on the right is fringed with black ostrich feathers
During an eunoto ceremony when Msai warriors become junior elders, their heads are shaved and they daub themselves with white clay
Turkana elders wear decorative ivory lip ornaments, secured in position by a spigot which is inserted in a hole pierced below the mans lower lip after initiation
The Turkana spear-fish in the shallow waters of Lake Turkana. The wooden shaft has a detachable metal tip with a sharp barb, which is secured to the end of a long piece of rope
A Samburu boy in reflective mood after his circumcision. A day after the ordeal, he will hang in his pierced earlobes copper earrings normally worn by married women
A Samburu youth, his head freshly shaved, has milk poured over him from a wooden gourd-like container decorated with green grass prior to his circumcision
A Hamar woman blows a tin trumpet at a Jumping of the Bull ceremony. The Hamar are semi-nomadic pastoralists of Southwest Ethiopia whose women wear striking traditional dress
Nyangatom men their faces and bodies with stylised patterns using natural pigments obtained from chalk, ochre and crushed rock prior to a dance
A Dorze man sits outside his home smoking locally-grown tobacco using a traditional long-stemmed pipe. Living in highlands west of the Abyssinian Rift Valley
A Borana man at Mega in southern Ethiopia wears a phallic Kallaacha on his forehead. Made of cast aluminium and ivory or bone
A Mursi woman wearing a large clay lip plate. Shortly before marriage, a girls lower lip will be pierced and progressively stretched over a year or so
A Karo man with braided hair plays a traditional stringed instrument beside the Omo River near Duss. Young men settle disputes by fighting with hippo hide whips
A Dassanech man in full tribal regalia participates in a dance during a month-long ceremony. He wears a cheetah skin draped on his backs and a black ostrich-feather headdress
Two Datoga men participate in a mock stick fight. The Datoga (known to their Msai neighbours as the Mang ati and to the Iraqw as Babaraig) live in northern Tanzania and are primarily pastoralists
Two young Datoga boys. The youngest wears metal bells around his ankles to ensure that he does not wander far from home without his mother or another member of the family hearing him
A young Datoga boy attired in beads. The metal bells worn around his ankles ensure that he does not wander far from home without his mother or another member of the family hearing him
A Hadza boy carrying a bow and arrows.The Hadzabe are a thousand-strong community of hunter-gatherers who have lived in the Lake Eyasi basin for centuries
Hadza youth sings to the accompaniment of his two-stringed musical instrumentSitting on a Greater Kudu skin, a Hadza youth wearing a baboon skin cape sings to the accompaniment of his two-stringed musical instrument.The Hadzabe are a thousand-strong community of
Datoga baby on his mothers backA Datoga baby is carried in a leather carrier on his mothers back The traditional attire of Datoga women includes beautifully tanned and decorated leather dresses
Msai warriors draw water for livestock from a wellMsai draw water for livestock from a well
Deep Msai wells at Loibor Serrit where cattle paths are cut deep into the soil to allow livestock nearer to the source of water
A young Msai herdsboy controls his familys cattle at the Sanjan River to prevent too many animals watering at the same time
Three Msai girls at Shimu la MunguThree Msai girls sit on the edge of Shimu la Mungu (a volcanic blow hole known as Gods hole ) with the extinct volcano, Kerimasi, in the distance
A Wa-Arusha warrior carries home a yoke. His brown necklace is made from aromatic wood. The Wa-Arusha are closely related to the Msai and speak the same _maa language
A Msai woman in traditional attire. The preponderance of white glass beads in her ornaments denotes that she is from the Kisongo section of the Msai, the largest clan group
Msai youth with decorated faceBlack clothing and the intricate white patterns on the face of this Msai youth of the Kisongo section signify his recent circumcision
Msai - old and newOld and new. Dressed traditionally and carrying familiar wooden staff, two young men give hints that the lifestyle of younger Msai generations is changing gradually in Tanzania
Young Datoga man in a wellA young Datoga man helps to draw water for his familys livestock from a well on the east side of Lake Manyara. All young men wear strings of twisted yellow and light blue beads round their waists
A young Datoga boyA young boy of the Datoga tribe crosses the plains east of Lake Manyara in Northern Tanzania. The Manyara escarpment (a western boundary wall of the Gregory Rift) is visible in the distance
A Hadza hunter wearing a baboon skin returns to camp with a haunch of impala over his shoulder. He killed the antelope with a metal-tipped arrow that had been dipped in a fast-acting vegetable poison
A Hadza hunter fledges an arrow shaftA Hadza hunter wearing a baboon skin fledges an arrow shaft with guinea fowl feathers using the sinews of an antelope.The Hadzabe are a thousand-strong community of hunter-gatherers who have lived in
A Hadza hunter smokes cannabis from a crude stone pipeA Hadza hunter wearing a genet cat skin cape smokes cannabis from a crude stone pipe sheathed in leather.The Hadzabe are a thousand-strong community of hunter-gatherers who have lived in the Lake
A Himba woman in traditional attire. Her body gleams from a mixture of red ochre, butterfat and herbs. Her long hair is styled in the traditional Himba way
A Himba mother and baby son relax outside their dome-shaped home. Their bodies gleam from a mixture of red ochre, butterfat and herbs
Almost every Himba woman wears anklets. They comprise strands of homemade metal beads threaded onto leather. Women cover their bodies in red ochre mixed with butterfat
A Samburu initiate with bird skins hanging from his headband. While their wounds heal for a month after circumcision, initiates spend their time wandering in the countryside attempting to kill as
A Samburu initiate takes aim at a bird with a blunt arrow. While their wounds heal for a month after circumcision, initiates spend their time wandering in the countryside attempting to kill as many
A Samburu mother shaves her sons head outside her home the day before he is circumcised. Round her neck hangs his nchipi - the distinctive decoration of every boy who participates in the circumcision
Mothers rub animal fat into their sons cloaks to make them supple. This task is performed shortly before the boys set out on an arduous journey to collect sticks, staves and gum to make bows
A Samburu youth is forcibly restrained after throwing a fit in the tension-filled days leading up to his circumcision. It is not uncommon for Samburu youths and warriors to succumb to hysterical
A Turkana woman sitting in the doorway of her hut. Her heavy mporro braided necklace identifies her as a married woman. Typical of her tribe
