Southern Larim oil container

1979.20.166

Sudan

[Southern Sudan] Eastern Equatoria Loryok

Southern Larim

By March 1979

Gourd Plant

Hollowed , Dried , Decorated , Sgraffito , Incised , Inlaid

Ht = 215, rim diam = 27, mouth diam = 21, rim th = 3, neck diam max = 58 by 57.5, min diam = 28.7 x 28.2, body diam = 148 mm [RTS 25/3/2005].

51.1 g

Purchased at Loryok for 25 piastres sometime between 20th and 25th March 1979 by Jill Goudie, an archaeologist who was part of the British Institute in Eastern Africa's Expedition to the Southern Sudan, headed by Patti Langton [RTS 12/5/2004].

Jill Goudie

Patti Langton

Purchased 1979

20 - 25 March 1979

Upright gourd vessel, cut roughly flat across the mouth, with a bulbous neck that constricts at its base, then flares out to a globular body with slightly convex underside. The vessel has been hollowed out, removing the pulpy interior of the plant and then drying out the skin. This ha an creamy yellow outer layer (Pantone 7401C), that has largely been scraped off, but survives in a band around the upper neck, and in patches over the body, which is a darker colour that varies in tone from yellow to orange (Pantone Pantone 7509C). The surface has been decorated using two different techniques. The first is more prominent, and consists of incising a geometric pattern around the shoulder then filling the cuts with charcoal to make the design stand out from the pale background. This is made up of a series of crosshatched triangles, with a row of pendant triangles around the base of the neck, points facing downwards, and with 5 vertical lines of similar triangles hanging down from these, some in straight rows and others as curving arcs. The triangles in these hanging sections sometimes point in one direction, and sometimes alternate. There is also one partial row of horizontal triangles, again pointing downwards, just above the widest point of the vessel. These groups have been inlaid with black pigment (Pantone black 6C). There is an additional horizontal row of 4 similar triangles below this, infilled with a darker reddish brown pigment (Pantone black 4C). The second decorative technique used is known as sgraffito, and involves cutting below the surface layer to expose a darker body colour beneath. This has been used to create a row of pendant triangles, also just above the bulging centre of the jar; these are not crosshatched. The object is complete, with a cut running down from the rim where the knife used to shape the rim must have slipped; there are numerous other shallow cuts visible across the body, which is discoloured with black patches on one side. There is also a black band around the top of the neck, possibly burning. The vessel has a weight of 51.1 grams, and is 215 mm high; the rim has a diameter of 27 mm, and 21 mm across its mouth, with a rim thickness of 3 mm; the neck has a maximum diameter of 58 by 57.5 mm, and a minimum diameter at its base of 28.7 by 28.2 mm, while the body has a diameter of 148 mm.

Purchased at Loryok for 25 piastres sometime between 20th and 25th March 1979 by Jill Goudie, an archaeologist who was part of the British Institute in Eastern Africa's Expedition to the Southern Sudan, headed by Patti Langton.

These vessel was used to hold oil; its local name has not been recorded. The decoration on this example is very similar to 1979.20.169. The incised decoration on vessels such as this seems to have been applied using the same technique as recorded for the northern Larim. There women use a needle to incise the pattern into the surface, then rub charcoal over the lines to colour them. This technique differs from that used by the Dinka, who mark out their designs in charcoal, cut them into the surface with an iron needle then burn them in using a heated spear or knife blade (for an example of this method, see 1979.20.91). However the use of sgraffito has not been observed on any Northern Larim vessels in the museum's collection, although a few other Southern Larim pieces make use of it - see inscribed bowl 1979.20.170, and narrow container 1979.20.165.

Rachael Sparks 18/8/2005.

Accession Book Entry - [p. 185] 1979.20 (.1 - 206) P[urchase] MISS PATTI LANGTON, DEPT. of ETHNOLOGY & PREHISTORY, OXFORD. Collection made by Patti Langton during the British Institute in East Africa's expedition to the Southern Sudan; Jan. - April 1979. The collection was made in three culture areas during the dry season. The amount paid for each object is listed if the information is known. In Jan. 1979 £1 is equivalent to 95 piastres (pt.) Sudanese. This documentation is based largely upon Patti's own list of objects and her notes on these. Sometimes objects included in the Pitt Rivers alootment of the collection do not appear on her list and have been added here. See Related Documents file as well. [p. 204] 1979.20.136 - 193 SOUTHERN SUDAN the LARIM The Larim live about 50 miles west of Kapoeta in the eastern corner of S. Sudan. They are a non-Nilotic pastoral people, living in permanent mountain villages. They are part of the Didinga-Longarim-Murle language group. They live in the Boya Hills - Boya is the Topasa (neighbouring group) name for the Larim, which is also used by the Administration. Longarim is the Didinga's name for them but they call themselves the Larim, and that is used here. [p. 205] The LARIM The collection was made in two parts. The "PL" labelled material was collected during Pat Langton's stay in a village in the Northern Larim area. The "∆" labelled material was collected by Jill Goudie, one of the archaeologists on the Expedition, from the base camp LARYOK, among the Southern Larim. Money is known among the Larim but it is used only for buying beads for women from Kapoeta, or for the few members of the group who would go to Juba. The women especially were more interested in exchange gifts of salt, cloth & soap. The Larim material is documented in three parts: a) General Larim pieces - no information as to which section of the Larim it comes from b) the "PL" Collection from the Northern Larim, from three of the eight Northern Larim clans c) the Southern Larim material collected by Jill Goudie, numbered "∆". [p. 210] 1979.20.163 - 193 SOUTHERN LARIM: Collected by Jill Goudie between 20.3 and 25.3.79 [210] 1979.20.166 Decorated gourd for oil. H = ca. 21 cm. Coll. no. ∆6; cost 25 pt.
Additional Accession Book Entry [above accession number in red biro] - A5-F35-3.

Card Catalogue Entry - There is no further information on the tribes catalogue card [RTS 26/5/2004].

Related Documents File - 1979.20 contains a typed packing list, which has been annotated; a typed list of objects arranged by Langton collection numbers and with pencil and biro annotations, and a handwritten list of objects by museum number, essentially repeating this information and annotated with PRM photo numbers in red. This handwritten list seems to be the direct source for the accession book entry. This item appears in Langton's list under the heading 'Southern Larim. These were all collected between 20.3.79 and 25.3.79' [RTS 12/1/2004].

Pitt Rivers Museum label - AFRICA, Sudan, Loryok. Southern Larim. Decorated gourd container, for oil. Coll. Jill Goudie for P. Langton March 1979, 6 [in triangle]. 1979.20.166 [plastic coated label, tied to object; RTS 23/3/2005].

Written on object - 6 [pencil, in a triangle], S. SUDAN, S. LARIM, P. Langton Coll., 6 [in triangle], 1979.20.166 [ink; RTS 23/3/2005].