One-of-a-Kind, hand beaded Ndebele Maiden Doll with gold neck rings.
Handmade in South Africa.
Size:11”T x 4”W base
*Please note each doll is hand beaded and may have visible threading. Please treat these delicate dolls with love and care.
ABOUT:The Ndebele are one of the smallest tribes in Southern Africa, the women are one of the most colorful and distinctive in their dress and adornment. The beadwork worn during different life stages indicates the individuals status within the community at any given time.
A fertility doll is made (in secret) for the bride by the maternal grandmother and is ritually presented to her when she enters her new hut after the wedding ceremony. Custom has it that, after the birth of the third child, the fertility doll must be given away, or destroyed, because it is considered unlucky to keep it any longer.
