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Survey of the Collection (I): the ethnography The information given below provides a brief guide to the contents of the Schuver collection. For greater detail, we recommend the visitor to consult the object descriptions. As already stated, the Schuver Collection is divided into three sections: the objects collected in Khartoum, and deriving from the Congo region and other areas south of the Sudan; the objects from the Sudan itself, also purchased in Khartoum; and artifacts collected by Schuver in the field. The objects originating from the northern Congo region come from the Mangbetu and Zande area. Here we are concerned with knives, (some meant for throwing), dish stands, a hair pin, small boxes, dishes, small chairs and a table.
Schuver made his purchases in the Khartoum market, and probably on one or two occasions in the Sennar market, of which he gave an extensive description. In these places he bought his items mostly from Sudanese Arabs. Such items included objects made from gourds, dish stands, and fabrics. He purchased several knives, now in the collection, from the Hadendoa who lived between the River Atbarah and the Red Sea. Rare objects included the headdresses and an ostrich feather from the Masai of the Blue Nile. Darfur produced fans, a dish and a club. The pieces with the greatest immediate appeal to the imagination are those Schuver acquired during his journeys of exploration. Thus we see a headdress, a raincoat and several pieces of jewellery produced by the Amam. Thanks to Schuver, the RMV owns dancing skirts and other items of clothing produced by the Kwama or Koma.
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