100 years ago today... N. W. Thomas reached the town of Kumrabai in present-day Lokomasama Chiefdom, Port Loko District on his anthropological tour of Sierra Leone. At the time of Thomass survey in 1914-15, Sierra Leone was troubled by what appeared to be ritualistic murders committed by the so-called Human Leopard Society. On 23 December 1914, while Thomas was staying in Kumrabai, a dog was attacked in the town and witnesses came forward claiming this was the work of the outlawed society, members of which had the power to transform themselves into leopards. It is clear, however, that actual leopards were also preying on animals in the vicinity and Thomas took this photograph of a leopard killed by a local hunter. In his Anthropological Report, Thomas wrote about the significance of leopards in local customs. Leopards were identified with chiefs. When a hunter killed a leopard he became a symbolic prisoner of the chief because he had killed the kings cat. Grass was tied around the leopards head, as shown in the photograph, and following a ritualized struggle for possession of the animal, the head and skin would be presented to the chief and the hunter released.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Dec 2014 21:41:58 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015