1.
LV & CU Wood carvers at work in country-side (6 shots)
0.34

2.
CU's various carvings on display at exhibition (8 shots)
1.07

3.
SCU Carvings (2 shots)
1.17

4.
CU & SV Intricate tall carving (4 shots)
1.54



Initials EH/MR/ES



Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved

Background: The National Development Corporation of Tanzania is showing the work of the Makonde wood-carvers at a special exhibition in the capital.

This is probably the biggest display of these sculptures ever mounted. It is hoped to bring them to the notice of art lovers throughout the world.

Makonde carvings are already fetching high prices in Europe and the United States.

The Makonde tribe originally came from Mozambique, but spread southwards to Tanzania and Kenya. The tribesmen's faces are often scarred by ceremonial markings. Many of them carve under the influence of "bangi", a local narcotic, and this is thought to account for the tortuous lines of some of their work.

Many Makonde carvers, attracted by the relatively high prices paid for their work in Dar es Salaam, have set up little workshops -- usually under trees -- on the outskirts of the capital.