The Tembu. Their Beadwork, Songs and Dances

(Cape Town: Purnell, 1976) 360003095. Author's signed presentation inscription on the title page. 4to; original orange boards; pictorial dustwrapper; pp. (xiv) + 118, incl. index; map; genealogical table; line drawings; photographs, incl. several in full colour. Dustwrapper very slightly edgeworn, with earlier owner's tape reinforcing to reverse of sunned spine panel at head; some foxing to reverse of dustwrapper, occasional fox spot elsewhere. Very good condition. "The Tembu, a branch of the Xhosa-speaking people in Southern Africa, live in the uplands of the western Transkei where, over the centuries, they have evolved an unwritten culture which allows each individual to play an independent role in their tribal society. This book is a detailed account of the art, customs, songs, dances and ceremonies of the Tembu people, in which the author sets out to explain the intricacies of tribal life. From the deep understanding of the people about whom she writes and from years of dedicated research, Joan Broster has compiled this unique study of the Tembu people, to stand as a permanent record of an African culture in the face of sweeping social changes in modern African societies." .