Baganda Standing Flute or Trumpet in Female Form

A musical instrument with a fine head of hair and a level stare.

This standing flute or trumpet in female form is from the Baganda people of Uganda. It is wood with metal applique and beads. Music held an important place at the Baganda royal court, with its ensembles of drums, flutes and trumpets. A carved woman tops the tall column, her crested hair swept back, her face and torso studded in dots of pale metal. A collar of red and white beads circles her neck. Below the round opening at her belly, ridged bands step down the shaft. Five feet high.

One round opening at the center. Everything else stays perfectly composed.