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Campamento de ganado de la tribu Mundari, Terekeka, Sudán del Sur, 2024-01-29, DD 242
2024-01-29
- Classification
- Photograph
- Museum
- Wikimedia Commons
- Rights
- CC BY-SA 4.0, as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed
About this work
Mundari man polishing the horns of one of his Watusi cows using a mixture of cow urine and ash as a ritualistic and protective practice in a temporary cattle camp in Terekeka, South Sudan. The picture was taken just after sunset and the smoke in the background is the result of cow dung bonfires. The Mundari are a small ethnic group of South Sudan that belong to the Karo. They have a symbiotic relationship with their Ankole-Watusi cattle, using the animals as a vital source of wealth, food, and spiritual connection, rather than for meat. The cows are central to Mundari life, providing milk for sustenance, dung for fuel (when burned to produce smoke that keeps mosquitoes and other insects away) and ash (used as a repellent and for cosmetic purposes), and acting as a form of currency for dowries. Herders dedicate their lives to protecting the prized Ankole-Watusi cows, sleeping alongside, viewing them as a living bank and a source of profound cultural significance.
