“PYGMIES OF AFRICA” 1939 MBUTI PEOPLE CENTRAL AFRICA / CONGO PYGMY DOCUMENTARY 66014
Want to support this channel and help us preserve old films? Visit
Visit our website
This 1939 black and white classroom film produced by Encyclopedia Britannica Films in collaboration with H.C. Raven of the American Museum of Natural History depicts indigeonous Central African foragers, aka Mbuti, Bambuti, or Pygmy peoples of the African Congo. Emphasis is placed on methods of hunting and gathering food, while artisanal crafts of basket making and shelter construction are also depicted in this educational documentary short that uses dated language (TRT 20:07).
Opening titles (0:08). Dense tropical forests in the Ituri Rainforest region surrounding the Congo River. Thick masses of tangled vines and great tree trunks. A galago or “bush baby” clinging to a tree branch. A pangolin or “scaly anteater” (0:15). An Mbuti woman gathers dried vines and forms the structure of a domed shelter. A small child brings a pile of mongongo leaves to cover the shelt