English

In Central & W. Africa in the centuries just before & after European contact, powerful kingdoms flourished, each with distinctive art practices. The royal arts of Benin, Yoruba, Dahomey, Asante, Kongo, Kuba etc are the subject of this book. What are the court-art traditions of the African royal states? How do art & architecture define individual, dynastic, royal & national identity? What is the impact on them of centuries of trade, colonization & religious exchange? How is this art to be understood within its cultural context? Blier draws on a vast range of individual objects-crowns & masks, thrones, regalia, palace architecture, painting, textiles, body decoration & jewelry-as well as archival photographs of art works in use in ceremonies & performances. Using detailed descriptions she offers a cultural reading of these complex arts. Her expert examination goes beyond particular visual analysis to explore vital questions of royalty, power, divine kingship, state cosmology, women's place at court, & the use of art in dynastic history, diplomacy & war.