Kuba titleholders, Mushenge, Congo (Democratic Republic)

The photograph depicts some high-ranking Kuba notables at the court of Nyim Kot a-Mbweeky III. "The most visible insignia of titleholding associated with hats and headdresses is the specific bird feather (lashal) worn by each titleholder. Each title is associated with a particular bird whose characteristics the titleholder is thought to share. It is the accumulative nature of Kuba costuming, encompassing not only feathers but beads, shell, brass, and copper which is characteristic of Kuba royal display at the highest level. The most common hat pins are made of iron and aluminum, or entirely of brass. A miniature bell is affixed to the end of the pin by a ring. Pins made from brass clearly articulate a person's elevated rank even when they are worn with a common everyday 'laket'." [Darish P., Binkley D., 1995: Headdresses and Titleholding Among the Kuba, Crowning Achievements, UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History]. This photograph was taken when Eliot Elisofon was on assignment for Westinghouse Film and traveled to Africa from October 26, 1970 to end of March 1971.