York's Shona Gallery
The
Blog
Stories of the artists and peoples behind the work: the sculptors, tribes, and traditions that have shaped our collection.
The Nafana Tribe
The Nafana are a small Gur-speaking people inhabiting the borderland between northwestern Ghana and northeastern Côte d'Ivoire. Despite their relatively small population, they are renowned across the...
The Dan Tribe
The Dan are a Mande-speaking people of western Côte d'Ivoire and eastern Liberia, inhabiting the mountainous forest zone at the border of the two countries. Their mask tradition is one...
The Masaai Tribe
The Maasai are a Nilotic ethnic group inhabiting the semi-arid savannah of southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. Distinguished by their distinctive red shukas, elaborate beadwork, and warrior traditio...
The Benin Kingdom
The Kingdom of Benin, centred on Benin City in present-day Nigeria, was one of the most sophisticated polities in pre-colonial Africa. At its height from the 13th to the 17th...