This large and quite unusual Bao board is carved in the shape of a lady
I took this photo on our recent trip to the Tanzanian coast. It is of a Bao board which has been carved to look like a lady, and is quite unusual.
If you are wondering what a Bao board is, you can read the post I wrote about it over here. Basically, 'Bao' is the Tanzanian name for a 'board' and this is a local type of 'board game', (although it is played in many different parts of Africa).
I'm not sure what type of wood this particular Bao board is carved from - all I can tell you is that it is HUGE and about the size of a (at least 10 year old !) child lying down. It was out on the wooden veranda deck of the beach house we stayed in, surrounded by comfy scatter cushions.
Instead of pebbles in each of the holes (which are commonly used), there were seeds instead- once again, I'm not sure what kind of seeds they were but they had smooth, shiny and very hard outer shells.
Next time I meet the owners of the house (who also happen to be friends of ours) I'm going to ask them where they got the 'Bao Lady' from, and what her history is - and I'll be sure to post an update for you :)
