African seats have exceptional sculptural power; and they range from items incorporating carved figures to extraordinarily abstract forms of a minimalism astonishing even by Western standards. No other non-European culture can lay claim to such a variety of seats.

Alongside a multitude of stools and backrests for everyday use and unique to a particular group, one finds ritual seats decorated with symbolic representations, ceremonial stools and the partly European-inspired chairs of the heads of families, tribal princes and kings.

Drawing on over 170 examples, this book offers a survey of the seats of sub-Saharan Africa, an integral part of a traditional culture that is already disappearing. The various essays by noted ethnologists address the cultural histories and aesthetics of African seats and other objects, as well as their regional characteristics. In addition, there is a wealth of photographic evidence documenting the use of seats and their original contexts, both past and present.