Pokot Wood Milk Container with Lid and Strap Kenya MATTER COLLECTION

Milk container with a removable beaded lid. Has an animal hide strap to carry it.

Hand-carved wooden milk container made by the Pokot people of Kenya. Traditionally used to store and carry fresh milk, the vessel features a fitted lid and fiber strap for transport. Such containers were often smoked inside to help preserve the milk and add flavor.

Carved from a single piece of wood, these functional vessels reflect the pastoral lifestyle and skilled woodworking traditions of East African communities.

Their styles are similar to these found among the other nomadic pastoralists of Uganda, central Africa and Ethiopia, particularly among the Karamajong, and Pokot. All these peoples share cultural traits with the Turkana.

Provenance: Matter Collection

From the collection of Margie and Phil Matter. Margie lived in South Africa, and later she and her husband Phil opened a gallery in Tucson. Everything in this collection was in their home for more than thirty years. Africa Direct recently bought the collection; at 95, Margie wants to share the things she has loved so much.