Atlantic coast of the Republic of Guinea
Baga
Wood, hide, rattan
Early 20th century
Height: 30.13 in; Width: 14 in; Depth: 11.5 in
Membranophone – Struck (Directly) – Single-headed

A tall impressive and stately carved wooden drum called a ‘timba.’  These drums were used exclusively by Baga males of Guinea, primarily in male initiation ceremonies called kä-bërë-Tshol or ‘entering the medicine’, of the secret Simo society.  It was a tool that underscored the primacy of male social institutions and their political power in an adult world.  The timba could also be played at weddings, funerals of high-ranking male elders and sacrifices to the ancestors, especially after the harvest.  These ceremonies ceased with the Islamization of the Baga people in the 1950’s.

According to Frederick Lamp, the horse figure appeared in two traditional works of the Baga, the drum and the stool.  It was a sculpture that symbolized the patriarchy adaptation due to changing political conditions at the highest ritual level.  While the male drum was called ‘timba’, the female counterpart association called ‘A-Tekan’ used a drum called a-ndef.  (See examples in this collection).

This timba comes from the collection of the renowned historian, bibliophile, and writer, Charles L Blockson  (December 16, 1933 – June 14, 2023), Philadelphia, PA.  Blockson was a co-founder of the African American Museum in Philadelphia; founding member of the Pennsylvania Black History Committee of the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission; past president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society; former chairman of the National Park Service Underground Railroad Advisory Committee; and former director of the Philadelphia African American Pennsylvania State Marker Project (the largest African-American marker program in the United States).

Resources:
Lamp, Frederick. 1996. Art of the Baga. New York: Museum of African Art.  https://www.randafricanart.com/Baga_drums.html.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_L._Blockson