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In Mubende Hill, Uganda, African art history lives through its spiritual traditions. Centering the agency of ritual objects and the ancestral Omweyimirize tree, this book reveals how clay pots, calabashes, Bachwezi cups and other artefacts mediate healing, identity, and continuity among the Balyammere. Drawing on oral histories, participatory fieldwork and decolonial critique, the author challenges museum practices that silence sacred objects by stripping them from context. It foregrounds indigenous interpretive authority while highlighting contemporary artistic re-engagements that sustain cultural knowledge, spiritual vitality and African epistemic sovereignty.
“This book bears a nuanced, new perspective: the focus on decolonizing indigenous African art history and heritage could provide a fresh perspective on the field.” • Babirye Angella Nakaayi, Bugema University
Claire Nalukenge is a Ugandan art historian and structural textile designer whose scholarship and practice center on indigenous aesthetics, spirituality, and cultural identity. She has co-organized art auctions, curated and facilitated exhibitions and gallery tours.
List of Figures
Acknowledgements
Preface
Introduction
Chapter 1. From Scared to Secular: Reframing Mubende Hill in Ugandan Visual Art Practice
Chapter 2. Framing Ritual Objects and Healing
Chapter 3. Contextualizing the Spiritual Space of Mubende Hill, Uganda: Awaka w’Ensi w’Omweyimirize Maama Nakayima
Chapter 4. Object Stories in Relation to Ritual and Spiritual Performance at the Spiritual Space of Mubende Hill
Glossary
References
Index