THE ANNUAL KU-OMBOKA CEREMONY FOR WESTERN PROVINCE ENROUTE FROM LEALUI TO THE SUMMER CAPITAL LIMULUNGA
inscribed on the reverse
acrylic on canvas
55 x 100cm; 21 3/4 x 39 1/2in
unframed

Property of a Private Collector, Germany

Provenance
Sale, Auktionshaus Kendzia, Hamburg, 25 November 2023, lot 767
Acquired at the above sale by the present owner

The Litunga, loosely translating to keeper of the earth, is the king of the Lozi people of western Zambia. The current Litunga is Lubosi II. During the dry season, which spans from April to October, the king and his people reside at Lealui. Lealui or Lialui is located on the eastern end of the Baratose Floodplain about 14 km west of the town of Mongu and about 10 km east of the main channel of the Zambezi river on the Mongu-Kalabo Road. As the upper Zambezi flood waters encroach upon the compound the Litunga moves himself and his people to higher ground. Located on the edge of the floodplain, Limulunga is where the Litunga will stay for the remainder of the rainy season, starting in November and ending in March. This mass movement of people is known as the annual Ku-Omboka ceremony, which means to get out of water, celebrating the movement from Lealui to the summer capital of Limulunga and is considered one of the largest and most popular festivals in Zambia. The whole journey noramlly takes about 6-8 hours, with the king traveling on his own barge known as the Nalikwanda, painted black and white to mimic the Zambia's coat of arms. Atop the king's barge is a model of a black elephant as well as a fire to indicate to his people that the king is alive and well. The barge is large enough to carry all the king's possessions and it is considered to be a great privilege to be one of the one hundred or so paddlers powering the barge. Each paddler wears a scarlet beret headdress with a piece of lion's mane as well as a knee-length animal skin skirt. The return trip, although much less celebrated is known as the Kufuluhela.