Old Hair Adornaments – Ait Akka Tribe – Berber – Morocco

Mid 20th century – Tribal metal, paint; gr 213,5 (7.53 oz.); cm. 8,6 high x cm. 4,1 width (3.39″ x 1.61″).

Old berber hair ornaments from Ait Akka Tribe. Exquisite work. For similar examples see:

• 181 of “Bijoux du Maroc”, by Jacques and Marie-Rose Rabaté, Edisud / Le Fennec;
• 283 of “Splendeurs du Maroc”, Africa Museum Tervuren;
• 21 of “A World of Head Adornment: Africa, Asia, Oceania, America”, by Anne van Cutsem

Berbers are the indigenous ethnic group of North Africa. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. The name Berber appeared for the first time after the end of the Roman Empire. Many Berbers call themselves some variant of the word imazighen (singular: Amazigh), possibly meaning “free people” or “free and noble men”. Today, most Berber-speaking people live in Morocco and Algeria.

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