The Iconography of the Diola Ebanken Shield

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Periodical article

Title:	The Iconography of the Diola Ebanken Shield
Author:	Mark, Peter
Year:	1986
Periodical:	Paideuma
Volume:	32
Pages:	277-283
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Senegal
Subjects:	Diola ritual objects decorative arts Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups)
External link:	https://www.jstor.org/stable/23076650
Abstract:	This paper describes an antiwitchcraft amulet in the form of a shield of a type formerly made by the Diola of southwestern Senegal. The object was found by the author in the community of Tiobon in 1984. By referring to Diola masks which include similar decorative elements, he proposes an iconographic interpretation of the 'ebanken' or shield. Its surface impregnated with shards of mirror, cowries, buttons and red seeds, it is the visual embodiment of blood, power and protective force. The incorporation of disparate materials into the 'ebanken' facilitates the metaphorical restraint of the invisible forces which are inimical to man and which would normally be beyond human control. Bibliogr., notes, ref.