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Shell and glass beads from the tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo

Author
Organization
Project
  • KONGOKING (Political centralization, economic integration and language evolution in Central Africa: An interdisciplinary approach to the early history of the Kongo kingdom)
Abstract
The ancient Kingdom of Kongo originated in Central Africa in the 14th century. In the 15th century, the Portuguese organized tight contacts with the Bakongo. From then on European goods gained new significance in the local culture and even found their way into funerary rites. Among the most important grave goods in the Kingdom of Kongo were shell and glass beads. They occur in many tombs and symbolize wealth, status, or femininity. At the burial site of Kindoki, linked with the former capital of Kongo’s Nsundi province, a great number of shell and glass beads were found together with symbols of power in tombs attributed primarily to the first half of the 19th century. Determining the origin of these beads and their use in the Kongo Kingdom leads to interesting insights into the social and economic organization of the old Bakongo society, their beliefs, and the symbolic meaning of the beads.
Keywords
grave goods, Mbanza Nsundi, cemetery, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lower Congo, shell beads, beads, Kongo kingdom, Kindoki, glass beads

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Citation

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MLA
Verhaeghe, Charlotte, et al. “Shell and Glass Beads from the Tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo.” BEADS : JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF BEAD RESEARCHERS, vol. 26, Society of Bead Researchers, 2014, pp. 23–34.
APA
Verhaeghe, C., Clist, B.-O., Fontaine, C., Karklins, K., Bostoen, K., & De Clercq, W. (2014). Shell and glass beads from the tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo. BEADS : JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF BEAD RESEARCHERS, 26, 23–34.
Chicago author-date
Verhaeghe, Charlotte, Bernard-Olivier Clist, Chantal Fontaine, Karlis Karklins, Koen Bostoen, and Wim De Clercq. 2014. “Shell and Glass Beads from the Tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo.” BEADS : JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF BEAD RESEARCHERS 26: 23–34.
Chicago author-date (all authors)
Verhaeghe, Charlotte, Bernard-Olivier Clist, Chantal Fontaine, Karlis Karklins, Koen Bostoen, and Wim De Clercq. 2014. “Shell and Glass Beads from the Tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo.” BEADS : JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF BEAD RESEARCHERS 26: 23–34.
Vancouver
1.
Verhaeghe C, Clist B-O, Fontaine C, Karklins K, Bostoen K, De Clercq W. Shell and glass beads from the tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo. BEADS : JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF BEAD RESEARCHERS. 2014;26:23–34.
IEEE
[1]
C. Verhaeghe, B.-O. Clist, C. Fontaine, K. Karklins, K. Bostoen, and W. De Clercq, “Shell and glass beads from the tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo,” BEADS : JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF BEAD RESEARCHERS, vol. 26, pp. 23–34, 2014.
@article{5814106,
  abstract     = {{The ancient Kingdom of Kongo originated in Central Africa in the 14th century. In the 15th century, the Portuguese organized tight contacts with the Bakongo. From then on European goods gained new significance in the local culture and even found their way into funerary rites. Among the most important grave goods in the Kingdom of Kongo were shell and glass beads. They occur in many tombs and symbolize wealth, status, or femininity. At the burial site of Kindoki, linked with the former capital of Kongo’s Nsundi province, a great number of shell and glass beads were found together with symbols of power in tombs attributed primarily to the first half of the 19th century. Determining the origin of these beads and their use in the Kongo Kingdom leads to interesting insights into the social and economic organization of the old Bakongo society, their beliefs, and the symbolic meaning of the beads.}},
  author       = {{Verhaeghe, Charlotte and Clist, Bernard-Olivier and Fontaine, Chantal and Karklins, Karlis and Bostoen, Koen and De Clercq, Wim}},
  issn         = {{0843-5499}},
  journal      = {{BEADS : JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY OF BEAD RESEARCHERS}},
  keywords     = {{grave goods,Mbanza Nsundi,cemetery,Democratic Republic of the Congo,Lower Congo,shell beads,beads,Kongo kingdom,Kindoki,glass beads}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{23--34}},
  publisher    = {{Society of Bead Researchers}},
  title        = {{Shell and glass beads from the tombs of Kindoki, Mbanza Nsundi, Lower Congo}},
  url          = {{http://www.beadresearch.org/Pages/Journal_Contents.html}},
  volume       = {{26}},
  year         = {{2014}},
}