An Introduction to the Somali

Ethnographic Collection
Kept in the British Museum
Compiled by RAAD International for the
Somali-British Heritage Link Project
T
h
e

S
o
m
a
l
i

A
r
t
e
f
a
c
t

C
o
l
l
e
c
t
i
o
n
2 3
related to the Oromos and Afars and other ethnic groups inhabiting that
Region. According to their way of life the Somali people could be divided
into three sections:
Those who live around the two rivers and the north-western 1.
part of the peninsula and practice sedentary and semi-sedentary
agriculture.
The urban group who live in the towns and villages. 2.
The pastoralist who formerly used to be by far the largest group. 3.
Today because of the current fast-paced urbanisation drive in Africa,
probably the majority of the population lead an urban life but in the past
although for centuries there was an urban population subsisting mainly on
trade in the coastal settlements and towns perhabs about 90% of the Somali
population were pastoralists who bred livestock and were occasionally on
the move in quest of new pastures for their animals following the seasonal
rains.
These Somali pastoralists are currently the second most populous section
of the Somali nation and they are the ones who have produced and utilised
most of the ethnographic objects of the Somali collection in the British
Museum.
The Somali Community in the UK
In early 19
th
century when the frst British arrived in Aden, Yemen,
the Somali population there was almost equal to that of the local Arab
inhabitants. Part of the Somali population settled in Aden were traders in
livestock, frankincense and other products of their country while most of
the others came there to earn their living mainly through manual labour.
These men who were mainly in their prime were readily recruited by the
British as seamen, household servants and policemen.
The frst members of the Somali community to arrive in the UK were these
seamen who were mainly recruited in Aden as stokers on British steamers
and later settled around the dock yards of some ports such as Liverpool
and Cardiff. These were followed by another group during and after the
Second World War. After the dismantlement of the British merchant feet in
1950s, members of the Somali community moved to industrial cities such
as Birmingham, Sheffeld and Manchester.
The Somali Collection in the British Museum
Historical Background
In 1825 after the British brig Mary Ann got wrecked on the Northern
Somali coast near the main port of Berbera, events consequential to
this incident led to the frst signing of agreements with Somali elders
concerning the protection of British ships and crew sailing by the Somali
coast. Similar agreement was again signed in 1955 after Richard Burton
and his party were attacked in Berbera when they returned from Harrar.
In 1839 when the British occupied the strategic port of Aden it soon
became a major coaling station for British steamers and the seat of an
important military garrison which was provided with fresh supplies of meat
from the opposite Somali coast.
In order to secure this supply of fresh provisions to the Aden garrison
the territory of what is now known as Somaliland became a British
protectorate in 1884 following the signing of nominal agreements with
elders of major Somali clans. Thus from 1884 to 1960 a large portion of
the Somali territories was part of the British Empire and from that time and
even decades before many British offcers and other Europeans visited the
Somali peninsula.
Some of these offcers collected samples of the fauna and fora of
the country as well as quantities of the ethnographic material some
of which found their way into the UK. Some of these artefacts are in
private collections but most are kept in museums and other heritage
preservation institutions. In the following pages of this booklet contain
some information about the Somali Ethnographic Collection of the British
Museum.
The Somali people
The Somali people inhabit the Somali peninsula which covers most of
the territory of the Horn of Africa. In modern geopolitical terms the area
inhabited by the Somali people today covers the former Somali Republic
and, approximately one-ffth of Kenya, one-ffth of Ethiopia and about half
of the Republic of Djibouti. This extensive area is largely arid or semi-arid
and has two rivers the Shabelle and Jubba.
The Somali people belong to the lowland Cushitic groups of people
inhabiting mainly the eastern regions of the Horn of Africa and are closely
4 5
The Collectors and the Collection
The Somali collection held in the British Museum is kept by the department
of Africa, Oceania and the Americas and consists mainly of ethnographic
material that found its way into the museum through donations or through
purchase from collectors.
The following paragraphs contain some details of the method of acquisition
and description of the Somali collection:
In 1911 eleven objects including weapons collected by Major 1.
Grant were donated to the Museum by Christy Fund which
was established in 1865. Henry Christy gave 5,000 for the
development of the collection after his death and has enabled the
museum to acquire many thousands of artefacts since the fund was
established.
In 1913 fourteen objects comprising spoons, vessels and 2.
baskets were donated by Louis Colville Gray Clarke who was a
connoisseur, collector,
and donor to the
British Museum and
Fitzwilliam Museum
in Cambridge.
Educated at Trinity
Hall, Cambridge, he
joined the staff of the
University Museum
of Archaeology
and Ethnology and
Anthropology in
Cambridge (1922-37).
He travelled widely
in Central and South
America, Africa and
excavated in Hungary
and New Mexico.
In 1925 nine 3.
objects of vessels and
Due to the current on-going confict over 3 million Somali people either
fed the country and migrated to many parts of the world or are displaced
within their country. As a result of this confict the largest Somali migration
to the UK occurred in late 1980s and late 1990s.
There are currently many young British-born Somalis who have little or no
knowledge of the historical background or the cultural background of their
community and heritage. It is particularly for the beneft of this group that
this booklet is compiled although it is hoped that it will raise the cultural
awareness of the Somali community here in general.
Today there are over 350,000 ethnic Somali individuals in the U. K., the
majority are in London where the Somali community has a visible presence
in most of the Boroughs. But in spite of its large number the Somali
community in the UK rarely interacts with the diverse cultural heritages of
the other communities in the UK and is even barely aware of the presence
of the Somali cultural heritage objects in the British Museums Department
of Africa, Oceania and the Americas.
With the help of this booklet and other undertakings RAAD intends to
develop the cultural awareness of the Somali community in London
especially the youth by introduction to the Somali collection held in the
British Museum.
Introduction to the Somali collection
From ancient times the diverse cultures of Africa have been expressed in
objects of everyday use. These include household objects, weapons and
musical artefacts and other unique works of art. The African collection
at the British Museum comprises archaeological, old and contemporary
material from all across the continent.
The department of Africa, Oceania and the Americas of the British Museum
holds an African collection of over 65,000 objects which includes about
1,200 objects from Somalia. The Somali collection consists of ethnographic
artefacts made by the contemporary population and those found or
excavated there. One of the earliest objects from Somalia in the British
Museum is a stone hand axe that is over two and half million years old.
Some objects from the Somali collection are on display in the museums
permanent galleries- Gallery 25, The Sainsbury Africa Galleries.
Youngsters studying some of the collection objects
displayed for their beneft.
6 7
braziers were donated by Kenya Empire Exhibition Committee.
One hundred thirteen objects including Domestic items and 4.
weapons were donated by Lt. Col. P. E. Allden in 1928.
Eighty eight objects including Jewellery and weapons which were 5.
part of miscellaneous collection largely of Somali origin that
were donated to the museum by Colonel H. G. C. Swayne and
his younger brother Brigadier General Sir Eric Swayne in 1933.
Major H. G. C. Swayne was one of the frst British offcers to travel
through Somaliland and he wrote a book titled Seventeen Trips
to Somaliland His brother returned to Somaliland and organised a
levy of Somalis against the Mohamed Abdalla Hassan (The Mad
Mullah), and later he became Commissioner of Somaliland with
military charge.
Ninety three objects of jewellery and weapons were donated by 6.
Captain G. Blaine.
And the Colonial offcer and amateur archaeologist A. T. Curle 7.
donated 49 objects
comprising bowels
and tools in 1934 and
147 archaeological
objects found during
his excavations in the
northern southern parts
of the Somali peninsula.
A. T. Curle served in
Somaliland and the
Northern Frontier
District (N. F. D.) of
Kenya and he wrote an
interesting paper titled
The Ruined Towns of
Somaliland. Other 21
objects including tools,
vessels and baskets were
also donated by A. T.
Curle.
Three hundred thurty objects including tools, vessels, weapons and 8.
jewellery were collected by Major Percy Horace Gordon Powell-
Cotton (1886- 1940), explorer, naturalist and founder of the Quex
Museum at Birchington in 1896. The artefacts were donated to the
British Museum by his daughter Miss Diane Powell-Cotton (1908
1986). Miss Diane and her sister Antoinette undertook feldwork
and collecting trips to Africa in late 1930s. Miss Diana and Miss
Antoinette Powell-Cotton visited Italian Somaliland (1935) and
Angola (1937 and I938).
14 objects mainly gourd vessels were donated by the Wellcome 9.
Historical Medical Trust. Sir Henry Wellcome established by terms
of his will in 1936. The Trust is a medical charity with a mission to
foster and promote research with the aim of improving human and
animal health.
Further information about the Somali collection and all other Africa
collections held in the British Museum is available online at:
www.britishmuseum.org.
Most of the information about the Somali Collection objects in this booklet
are taken from the museums online database.
One of the volunteers studying an object
Heidi Cutts with RAAD staff and volunteers
8 9
Water bottle or Ablution jug
Water-bottle or Ablution jug
(Somali name: Weyso), 24 cm
in height and 12 cm in diameter,
carved from wood. It has an
internal basketry stopper sewn in
place along the lower edge forming
the base. The body is decorated
with four vertical panels of
carved linear designs. The neck is
carved with two bands of intricate
interlacing and is tied around the
middle with a knotted leather strap.
The top stopper has a small central
hole used to minimise the water
fow during ablutions.
It was purchased from Lt-Col. P. E.
Allden, acquisition date 1928.
Incense Burner
Incense burner (Somali name
Idan or Dabqaad) made of
terra cotta, 16.5 cm in height
and 12 cm in diameter. It has a
conical foot with twelve pierced
holes, cup shaped body with
four panels of stamped and
combed decoration divided by six
triangular lugs each with central
hole, rim decorated with four
raised triangular decorations and
an integral handle. Gold coloured
mica appears across the surface of
the clay. This artefact is one of the
items purchased from Lt-Col. P. E.
Allden in 1928.
Milk bowel
This milk bowl (Somali name:
Dhiil) with lid is made from
the strips of bark obtained after
beating the stems of certain
shrubs sewn together. It is
decorated on outside with cowrie
shells. inside it is coated with the
sap of the of certain trees (mainly
Galol). The sap is obtained by
cooking the bark and afterwards
it undergoes through stages of
two different smoking processes
until it becomes waterproof. The
smoking processes are repeated
occasionally throughout the
vessels life. The acquisition date
or when the museum acquired
it was 1935. It was donated by
Major Percy Horace Gordon
Powell-Cotton/ Miss Diana
Powell-Cotton.
Gourd
Gourd used as water bottle (Somali
name: Dhuulo) 19.5 cm in height
and 14 cm in diameter. The gourd is
decorated all over with bands of incised
geometric designs. The base has a
central square motif with four bands of
chevrons radiating from the corners. In
between are cruciform motifs This item
was donated to the museum by Mr Louis
Clarke in 1913.
10 11
Ostrich egg
vessel
This is an ostrich egg
adapted to serve as
a vessel with leather
straps as carrier, 19
cm in height and
14 cm in diameter.
This is one of the
artefacts donated to
the museum by Major
Percy Horace Gordon
Powell-Cotton/Miss
Diana Powell-Cotton.
Acquisition date 1935
Bracelets
Bracelets (Somali
name: Sinde).
These artefacts
were part of the
objects donated
to the British
Museum by H.
G. C. Swayne in
1933.
Camel bell
Camel bell (Somali
name: Koor)
carved from wood.
As the name
indicates camel
bells are hung by a
string on the neck of
elderly camels that
usually lead others
or younger energetic
one that are liable to
get lost. It is believed
that the sound of the
bell keeps the camels
together in the bush
and makes the camel-herd aware of the location where they are grazing.
This camel bell was donated to the British Museum by Major Percy Horace
Gordon Powell-Cotton/Miss Diane Powell-Cotton. Acquisition date 1935.
Dagger
Knife made of iron (Somali name: Toori), 28 cm in length and
3.5 cm in width and 1.5 cm in depth. It has a Leaf shaped, double
edged iron blade with central riser, guard of silver, metal and amber
coloured horn, hilt of alternate bands of iron, brass, ivory and black
coloured horn, semi-circular pommel made of amber coloured horn
and brass. It was donated to the museum by Major Percy Horace
Gordon Powell-Cotton/Miss Diana Powell-Cotton in1935.
12 13
male friends and relatives of the groom on the 7th day of the wedding in a
well attended ceremony. It has the shape of a young female and represents
the bride.
Khol holder
Eye-black bottle (with stopper) 15 cm in length
and 3 cm in width. The bottle is carved from
wood with leather carrier. It is rectangular in
shape with carved, interlace designs front and
back, and has a neck with two lugs front and
back and a carved wooden stopper tapering to
a long point for the application of eye-black.
The fringed leather carrier in the form of a strap
passes around the sides of the bottle, through the
two lugs to form a loop at the top. A darker strip
of leather wraps
around the neck of
the bottle, through
the lugs to hold the
carrier in place.
This is one of the
artefacts donated
by Major Percy
Horace Gordon
Powell-cotton/Miss Diane Powell-Cotton in
1935.
Perfume bottle
Perfume bottle (Somali name: Qurarad-
cadar) made of commercially moulded
glass, with metal and cork stopper encased
in a leather carrier decorated with rows of
cowrie shells and small red glass tubular
beads stitched in place with cotton thread. The
carrier is tied together with cotton thread.
Necklace
Necklace (Somali name Djilbad)
with bells made of silver with
amber and glass beads. Colonel
H. G. C. Swayne wrote that this
necklace and the bracelets above
were given by Hajji Shire Farah, a
Native Levy [military] leader under
his brother at the time of Mohamed
Abdalla Hassan (the Mad Mullah)
operations, as a gift to his cousin
Miss F. L. Swayne. This artefact
was donated Col. H. G. C. Swayne
in 1933.
Heedho
This Item is called Heedho or Fujan
in Somali; it is an important household
item which has dual usage. Firstly, it
is a container designed and produced
by women and used by pastrolists to
keep Muqumad or Odkac which
is made in the following way: strips
of meet are dried in the sun, cut into
small pieces and then fried in ghee or
purifed butter.
Secondly, It is also used as a wedding
gift given to the Bride and groom by
the females in laws from the pride
side of the family. It is flled with
muqumad (dried meat, dates and
ghee). The Heedho is opened by the
14 15
Decorated mat
Woven mat made of grass,
cotton, glass beads and cowrie
shells 44 cm in diameter and
0.5 cm thick.
This object was hung on
internal walls of houses for
decoration purposes.
Head rests
Head rests of different styles are found among the Somali collection.
People of different cultures have used head-rests of various designs. The
main function of the head-rest was to protect hairstyle during sleep. The
Somali head-rest is made of very light Commiphora wood and was part of
the mens attire.
1
2
The Somali names of the objects pictured on the lower part of this
page are given bellow:
1. Jimo; 2. Kuul
Abhad
This objects Somali name is Abxad (Abhad). The Abhad was the
suitcase of the Somali pastoralists. This one pictured here allegedly
belonged to Sayid Mohamed Abdalla Hassans household.
RAAD management and staff are very gratful to the
British Museums Department of Africa, Oceania and the
Americas particularly Heidi Cutts for her unwavering
support and warm reception during the implementation
of the Somali-British Heritage Link Project and the
compilation of this booklet.
RAAD
27 - 29 Southall Road, Southall; Middlesex UB1 1SU
Tel: +44(0)20 3538 0558/02(0)20 8574 1687
E-mail: info@raadinternational.com/raad7@aol.com
Website: raadinternational.com