Drum like flyssa marking

[Jim McDougall]

Thank you Emanuel, Tom and Kronckew for reviving this old thread! I still find the symbolism and motif on the flyssa fascinating, especially these odd variations from the somewhat standard geometrics. While I dont have my old notes handy at the moment, this sure makes me want to find them. It seems like somewhere the drum served as some kind of symbol of authority.

On the 'talking drums' it seems that as Tom notes, they were closely associated with Bantu speaking people as well as most West African regions.
I have the book on these drum signals but cant recall the title at the moment. It seems that the 'syntax' has to do somewhat with the dialects and languages that incorporate sounds like clicking, but again, details not handy at the moment. Naturally 'Hollywood' has made pretty much a cliche' out of these drum signals and messages, but they really are a fascinating and viable means of communication of these intriguing tribal peoples.

Best regards,
Jim