Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2004/11/28
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]We understand very little about these 'eggs' at present. They do not appear to be organic, though there may be a clay slip over an actual goose egg shell. The Arabic characters are incised into the surface and are almost certainly prayers, as "Allah" seems a repetitive motif. The style of the decoration suggests a West African origin, though this is speculation. Low-res x-ray reveals that they contain something metallic (and they rattle when shaken); we'll know more when they return from various x-ray and MRI examinations. There're actually seven of them, a number that is significant in various African contexts, and we know as well that there're anthropological reports of similar objects in ritual use in North and West Africa into the early 20th c.. Dating is also approximate as we have yet to establish the archeological environment within which they resided, though we know a bit about the plantation, its owners, and its slaves. All of this is shaping up to be a pretty long-term project. It is a matter of some historical importance to establish the transmission of Arabic script literacy across the Black Atlantic and to demonstrate its persistence, no matter how corrupted, among Black Muslim slaves, of whom we no very little except that they existed. Cheers -----Original Message----- From: lug-bounces+cmbrow=wm.edu@leica-users.org [mailto:lug-bounces+cmbrow=wm.edu@leica-users.org] On Behalf Of GREG LORENZO Sent: Sunday, November 28, 2004 3:27 PM To: Leica Users Group Subject: Re: [Leica] PAW 3 Chandos Michael Brown writes in part > These artifacts, which are currently the subject of > investigation, were recovered from a plantation site in coastal South > Carolina. Their purpose is presently unknown, but they are remarkable > evidence of some degree of Arabic script literacy among presumably > Muslim slaves in late 18th century North America. This sort of > archeological evidence is fugitive, to say the least, and we are very > excited to have acquired them. > Very interesting historic PAW; both wrt the script and the fact that these survive intact for so many years. Do you know what was written exactly? Regards, Greg _______________________________________________ Leica Users Group. See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information