Cultural Archives

A monochrome photograph depicting the back of the head of a young Igbo boy. The subject features a highly structured, conical hairstyle with tightly coiled hair extending upward, adorned with a light-colored, flexible material wrapped horizontally around the mid-section. The …

A monochrome photograph depicting a seated human figure in formal ceremonial attire. The subject is positioned on a raised pedestal within a structure featuring a slanted wooden roof and textured mud or clay walls. The figure wears a dark, high-contrast …

A photograph depicting two Ohafia women from a posterior perspective, showing traditional long braids that extend from the head down the spinal column. The subjects have bare upper torsos and wear light-colored fabric wraps around the hips. The image originates …

A photograph depicting three Aro women with distinct cranial hair styling. The subjects are positioned in a row in front of a vertical structure of thin, dried organic stalks and horizontal poles. One subject is shown in profile facing right …

These black-and-white photographs, taken by Northcote Thomas between 1910 and 1911 as part of his anthropological survey, feature an Igbo elder from Öka (Awka). The first shows a close view of her face and head, adorned with a wooden head …

This photograph, taken by Northcote Thomas around 1910 as part of his anthropological documentation, features an Igbo woman with an elaborate geometric hairstyle. In Igbo culture, hairstyles often signified age, social status, and marital status, offering insight into personal adornment …

This photograph, taken by Northcote Thomas around 1913, shows an Igbo elder from Awka wearing an okpu agha, a fibre 'crash' helmet plaited from coarse fibre of Colocasia antiquorum stems for defense against weapons, and holding an ekpeke, a woven …