Common Thread Uniting Early African Cultures

Diversities are noticeable in early African cultures. The cultures were diverse and mobile and were affected and influenced by internal and external forces. But amidst of such diversities religion, art, sculpture and music were common threads uniting the early African cultures. To be very specific religion was the common thread that united African culture and art a perfect union. The religious aspect is visible in almost all the sculptural pieces of early African cultures. The sculptures of Nigeria by the Nok ethnic group or the bronze plaques of Benin, all carries a religious significance. In almost every early African cultures masks, sculptures, cooking bowls etc were created with the specific purpose of providing insight into the spiritual world unpredictable and unseen. The most common thing within the early African cultures was that their art was rarely used for any ornamental purpose but rather the art works represented the values, emotions and customs of the specific cultures. Besides, the religious beliefs of the early African cultures also shared common aspects. To the early African cultures afterlife was not perceived as distinct from mundane life. They believed that the world of living beings do consists of spirits (especially of ancestors) who had immense influence on the fate of the communities. The early African cultures commonly believed that communion with the world of spirits can be attained through trance and possession. And in this respect music and dance provided the means through which early Africans celebrated their rituals and did strive to save their cultural conventions.

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