Vintage Baganda Hima Milk Jug, Uganda - 117.1

An almost perfect Hima milk jug, known as an Ebyanzi — a fine specimen from Uganda. Jugs like this were used to store milk after milking the cow, and often served as a measure: the amount of milk a bride-to-be was expected to drink daily to fatten her up, as the Bahima people displayed their wealth through the fatness of their daughters.

The jug is carved from the omusisa tree, hollowed out from a single block, then soaked in mud from a shallow well for a week before being blackened in lamp soot or smoke. Over time these jugs often split, requiring a metal bandage to stop them leaking — a mark of long use rather than a flaw.

Size: 19cm D x 23cm H