Maasai

Large heavy hardback with unclipped dustcover over original boards.Text by Tepilit Ole Saitoti, with photographs by Carol Beckwith.

Named for the language they speak--Maa, a distinct but unwritten African tongue--the Maasai of Kenya and Tanzania still live much as they did thousands of years ago, herding cattle, sheep, and goats and existing in harmony with their peaceful environment in and around the Great Rift Valley. Tall, proud, aristocratic in bearing and manner, these handsome people have made their way into the twentieth century with their ancient customs and structure of their society preserved to an unusual extent. For the first time ever, this book--a kind of autobiography, since it is written by a Maasai--documents their living story. It recounts the ancient legends, reveals the songs and prayers, and vividly describes the stages of life for a Maasai: childhood, initiation, warrior rank, and finally elderhood.

Each chapter of the vigorous and intimate text is illustrated with line drawings and stunning colour photographs. Here are the feasts and ceremonies of the tribe; the daily work of maintaining the herds, beading skirts, and building huts and kraals; the warriors' games, dances, and flirtations; the elders' quiet moments of contemplation. Seldom has a people been more completely and sympathetically portrayed.

240 plates in full colour, 40 line drawings, and 3 maps included.

Owners ex-libris label to front paste down.

ISBN 0241 10498X