Sidamo Beaded Necklace – Southern Ethiopia

Glass beads, old bronze disck on leather. Cm 44,0 in lenght (17.32″). The talisman is cm. 19,0 high x 13,7 width (7.48″ x 5.39″); Gr. 182,0 (6.42 oz.).

The Sidama are an ethnic Cushitic people traditionally inhabiting the Sidama Zone of the Southern Ethiopia. They speak the Sidamo language, which is a language of the Cushitic branch of the Afroasiatic language family.

The Sidama preserved their cultural heritage, including their traditional religion and language despite the conquest by Emperor Menelik II.

The Sidama had their own well-established administrative systems that dated at least to the 9th century, though it was made up of a loose coalition of Sidama kingdoms. The region shows the extraordinary military-mindedness of past epochs, with entire communities surrounded by walls and garrisons.

Most Sidamo have retained their traditional religion based on worship of the sky god. Their political organization is monarchical: a divine king is a representative of the sky god.

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