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Lost early color photographs from Sudan shed light on tribal life
In 1948 and 1949 erstwhile war photographer George Rodger ventured to southern Sudan as the first Westerner officially permitted to photograph the peoples of the Nuba mountains. While Rodger's black and white images gained fame -- and inspired filmmaker and one-time Nazi propaganda maker Leni Riefenstahl to visit in the 1960s and 70s -- his color photographs, shot on a Leica with Kodachrome film, remained unpublished until now.
Pictured: Latuka dance of the rainmakers, 1948. A warrior sounds the native horn called the namogo, which is the end of an elephant's tusk covered with the uncut stretched skin of an ox tail.
George Rodger/Magnum Photos
Bracelet fighters of the Kao-Nyaro, 1949. Made of brass and weighing up to nearly five pounds, they could crack a man's skull.
George Rodger/Magnum Photos
Kao-Nyaro fighters, 1949. The Kordofan region at the time was distinctly different from the northern reaches of the country, which was ruled by the British. The north had a primarily Arabic culture, while the home of the Kao-Nyaro maintained its Sub-Saharan roots.
George Rodger/Magnum Photos
Wrestlers of the Kao-Nyaro, 1949. The sport is a source of pride and highly competitive, and has been practiced for millennia. Wrestlers cover themselves in wood ash and grapple, the aim being to put your opponent on the ground.
George Rodger/Magnum Photos
Korongo Nuba wrestlers wait to compete under the shade of a boabab tree, 1949.
George Rodger/Magnum Photos
The tribal wrestling contests of days past have since evolved, with Nuba wrestling now a major attraction, filling stadiums. Bookmakers can make their fortunes from local champions, and the champions themselves often have Olympic ambitions.
George Rodger/Magnum Photos
In Korongo Nuba wrestling, the champion is carried on the shoulders of the defeated party in what's known as "the chairing of the victor."
George Rodger/Magnum Photos
Latuka people perform a rain dance, 1948. The annual event takes place to bring luck to the harvest and ends with an animal sacrifice. The size of the animal, caught by Moyimiji warriors, correlates to the size of the harvest -- so the larger the beast the better.
George Rodger/MAGNUM PHOTOS
Young Latuka warriors wait for the ceremony to begin,1948.