Chair (Kiti Cha Enzi)
Swahili
19th century
Medium
Wood, ivory, and cotton fiber
Dimensions
125.7 × 75.6 × 72.4 cm (49 1/2 × 29 3/4 × 28 1/2 in.)
Classification
chair
Department
Arts of Africa
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
183077
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This style of high-backed seat with bone and ivory inlay, known as a “chair of power” or “grandee’s chair” (kiti cha enzi), is a graphic reminder of the complex history of international trade and conquest in the region known as the Swahili Coast. As early as the first century, the region’s natural harbors invited exchange with partners in the Persian Gulf and Western India. Later the Portuguese, Omani, and British imposed their authority on its inhabitants. With each conquering state, newly impo...