Esquisses Senegalaises

Esquisses Senegalaises
by P.-D Boilat
Adopted by
Michael & Tzun Ying Hardy
on May 20, 2021
Bamana woman richly dressed

Esquisses senegalaises

By P.-D Boilat. Paris: Karthala, c1984.

Authentic early images of West Africans are rare—and quite sought after. David Boilat offers us just such a portfolio in Esquisses Sénégalaises, published in 1853. The twenty-four color plates are remarkable for their attention to details of clothing, jewelry, hair styles, skin color, and facial features. His accompanying text describes, with remarkable equanimity for his time period, pertinent customs and behaviors ranging from the admirable to the deplorable—all judged from the local point of view. For example, the richly dressed Bamana woman wears a head tie of fine madras, a beautifully striped silk gown, and a necklace hung with small, finely woven straw rings. Equally elegant is the husband of the queen of Walo (a Wolof kingdom), dressed for a reception, wearing a large silver bracelet and an amulet around his neck, and carrying an honorific musket in keeping with his position as general of all the armies.

So who was David Boilat? Born in 1814, to a French father and Senegalese mother, both Catholic.  Orphaned early, he was sent to France to be educated, became a priest, and returned to Senegal in 1840 determined to promote the best of French culture, while respecting the social and cultural values of the Senegalese peoples.

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Adoption Type: Build and Access the Collection