Post
by Revelations » 27 Jul 2019, 11:25
MAIN CULTURAL FEATURES
69
Warriors wear on the forehead the genitals of enemies they have killed ; these may
also be hung over the door and left till they drop off. 18 For the most part the Galla
dp not wear ear-rings, 19 but Arusi men wear small copper rings in their ears, 20 and
Mata who kill elephants give gold ear-rings to their wives. 21 Necklaces range from
simple strings of beads to broad bands composed of numbers of such strings ; Arusi
women wear neckbands of hippopotamus hide. Men may wear a plain gut cord round
the neck. 22 Armlets are much worn, and ivory and horn armlets on a man always
denote recognition of bravery. The armlet called maldd may be worn only by those
who have killed five men, five buffaloes, and five lions 23 ; that called irbora or ilbora
is worn on the upper arm by men who have killed an elephant 24 or an enemy. 25 In
Wallaga both men and women wear circular ivory armlets of distinctive patterns,
some of those worn by men having alternating rings of white and darkened ivory ;
women were seen with six armlets of ivory and 42 of brass. 26 Arusi women wear
copper neck rings and necklaces of glass beads 27 ; men wear copper toe-rings and
large tin rings on the thumbs. 28
The Galla are fond of anointing their bodies with [deleted]. A man, however, must
earn the right to this practice ; not even his first success in battle gives him the right,
and in fact after this he is called ballesa (“ blunderer ”) till he succeeds in performing
a second act of bravery. Hence ballesa are much feared because of their eagerness
to acquire the coveted right to anoint their bodies. 29
