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Theme
flora, hunting, clothing/ornament, object
Photographer
Armand Joseph Oscar Hutereau (°1875 - †1914)
Place of production
Democratic Republic of the Congo > Province Orientale > Aruwimi & Uele > Uele > Bas-Uele
Culture
Benge
Legend
Photography tried to give a faithful representation of ‘everyday life’, which is clearly faked here. The person in the photo was wearing a leopard costume which Hutereau claimed was used for hunting. It was later assumed that the Aniota used these clothes as a disguise to kill people and later blame a leopard. The colonial government executed several Aniota in the 1920s and 1930 through hanging. However, terrifying stories about people who take the shape of felines can be found all over Africa as well as in Europe. In 1915, Belgian artist Paul Wissaert made an ethnographic series of sculptures of an 'Anioto of Stanley Falls', which can still be seen in the museum.
Original legend
Tireur du chef Benge Bayo (chasse au singe).
Inventory number
AP.0.0.11078
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