Young Lega woman with plantains, Shabunda, Congo (Democratic Republic)

"The staple crop is bananas. For example, they recognize fourteen traditional varieties of bananas, three imported from the Songola, two introduced by the Bangwana, and one brought in by the Europeans. Basically, the Lega are banana growers. It is in term of banana growing that their agricultural activities must be understood, since bananas play the principal role in diet, exchange, and ritual symbolism. Lega settlements are usually located some distance away from the banana fields." [Biebuyck D., 1973: Lega Culture. University of California Press]. During his trip to Congo (now Democratic Republic of Congo), Elisofon visited the Lega people at Shabunda and its surroundings in the Maniema district. This photograph was taken when Eliot Elisofon was on assignment for American Broadcasting Company and traveled to Africa from early December 1966 to early February 1967.