• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

ZimSculpt

Curators of Zimbabwean Sculpture Worldwide

  • About
  • Artists
  • Exhibitions
  • Gallery
  • News
  • Contact
  • Search
Reaching For The Moon
Reaching For The Moon
Reaching For The Moon

Reaching For The Moon by Jonathan Mhondorohuma

Stone: Springstone
Type: Human Life
Dimensions: 41h x 10w inches (104h x 25w cm)
Enquire
This sculpture is not for sale. Please enquire if you are interested in similar works.

This is the story of this sculpture;

THE LEGENDARY ROZVI CLAN AND THE MOON

In the Pre-Colonial era in Zimbabwe, there was the powerful kingdom of the Rozvi. It has its centre at Great Zimbabwe (historical ruins) and its influence stretched right across the central water through to the Dande Region in the Zambezi Valley.
The Rozvi Kingdom incorporated groups of different totems including the Hungwe/Shiri (Cockrel/Bird), Soko, Shumba (Lion) and many others.
In this Kingdom the Changamire (King) was the most revered person. There existed well organised administrative structures with clearly defined divisions of authority and responsibilities, one of these structures were the Dare (Jury) which was the Decision Making body. It acted as the Think Tank for the Kingdom discussing and initiating ideas for the enhancement of the welfare of the kingdom.
One night as the Dare were deliberating and brain-storming various issues, a brilliant suggestion came up. They toyed with the idea of capturing the new moon and using it as a defining ornmament for their King.
Soon enough, they took up the idea seriously and started mobilizing resources and manpower to construct a legendary tower. They were determined to reach out for the moon as an honor to their king. They used poles, ropes and stones to support the structure together. This was a massive projct, which required a lot of commitment and courage to work on. It was a sterling achievement to put together stairs of scaffolds towards the sky, to capture the new moon in its first quarter.
Eventually when the sturcture was about fifty metres hgh, after about three months of hard work, some of the materials used for construction started to give in and sadly the tower collapsed under its mass

Other pieces you might like:

  • Wise Elder by Bernard Matemera $4,600
    Wise Elder
    by Bernard Matemera
    $4,600
Follow us on Facebook

A real treat here in Wimbledon. At Cannizaro Park a superb open-air exhibition of Zimbabwean sculpture. There were many pieces, large and small, and a wide variety of different stone used in imaginative ways. And, overall, a real sense of Africa, linked to a long artistic tradition.

I was told that many of the sculptors had been trained within their own families: a father, an uncle, a grandfather, passing on the old skills.

Catholic Herald
  • © Copyright 2000 – 2023
  • Credits
  • Terms & Conditions & Privacy Policy
  • Delivery
  • Contact
 

Loading Comments...