Spears, style, and time among Maa-speaking pastoralists

Abstract

Stylistic change in Maasai spears is examined in light of their use as symbolic instruments. Importation, selection, use, and abandonment of formal traits in spears are analyzed for pastoralists of Samburu District, Kenya. The ever-changing form of spears helps males to move through a sequence of age grades, where graduation to each new grade changes one's status and social networks. Ethnoarchaeological significance of the Maasai example lies in how and why material styles both aid and reflect interaction between males of varying social status and how change in material styles helps to reinforce relatively stable social roles. Archaeologically, these Maasai socioeconomic processes may serve as analogs for Paleolithic and Mesolithic social structures that exhibited aspects of both egalitarianism and ranking.