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EP1 Behind the Mask May 27, 1975

The craftsmen of the Dogon people of Mali are among the finest sculptors in the world. The head of each household must tend the wooden cult figures in which the spirits of his ancestors dwell, feeding them regularly with millet and blood to ensure the fertility of the fields, the return of the seasonal rains and the health of the people. Concealed in remote desert shrines, the carvings are as meaningful to the Dogon as the Bible is to the Western world. Without their sculpture, some of the most splendid and crucial events in their lives could not take place.

EP2 Crooked Beak of Heaven Jun 03, 1975

The Northwest Coast Haida, Gitksan and Kwakiutl Indians inhabit a beautiful, harsh land along the coast of British Columbia and south to Oregon. Pre-eminent carvers of wood, they created totem poles that are among the largest wooden sculptures ever made by man. Integrating footage made of tribal rights by Edward Curtis in 1912, the film contrasts them with those same rights today. The spectacular theatrical genius of these people is particularly vivid during the dance of the cannibal birds known to the Kwakiutl as “the crooked beak of heaven.”

EP3 Sweat of the Sun Jun 10, 1975

Gold has fascinated people in all cultures, representing in their minds perfection and immortality. In the pre-Columbian Indian civilization of Central and South America native craftsmen fashioned gold into the most exquisite expressions of their culture. Few of the beautiful golden artifacts of the Aztecs and Incas are left today. Most of them were melted down by the pillaging Spanish conquistadors. However, some exquisite pre-Columbian art does still exists, and narrator David Attenborough describes how these were used by priests in practical and ritual fashion, including human sacrifice. He explores the Aztec and Inca sites, describing the lives of the people who occupied them and examining those breath-taking treasures that remain.

EP4 Kingdom of Bronze Jun 17, 1975

In 1897 a group of African bronzes arrived in London that caused a sensation. Many European experts refused to believe that the bronzesmiths of the obscure ancient African kingdom of Benin in Nigeria could have developed the sophisticated technique of bronze-casting by themselves. David Attenborough traces the bronzes and the “lost wax” technique back to the craftsmen of Ife, the sacred town of the Yoruba people, predating by a century any European influence. We also see the beautiful and elegant portrait busts, plaques and standing figures which read as impressive chronicles of the elaborate court life under the autocratic Obas of Benin.

EP5 Woven Gardens Jun 24, 1975

In a wonderful combination of beauty, function and tradition, this episodes features the rugs of the Qashqa’i Nomads of Iran. The rugs are a perfect mirror of the nomadic life of this Iranian people. Wool is gathered from sheep, goats and camels & dyes are made from the juices of plants. But with Qashqa’i rugs, beauty is second to function. They offer protection from the frozen ground and provide a shield against the bitter winds. When a girl marries a man from another group, she weaves the patterns her husband expects to see on his rugs, but she also integrates the images from her own tradition, thus creating a new family design.

EP6 Man Blong Custom Jul 01, 1975

Some of the most spectacular and dramatic tribal sculpture in the world came from the islands of the Western Pacific. Today, Malekula, in the New Hebrides is one of the few places where people still carve in the old tradition. Rituals are held in the men’s cult-house, where masks and figures are made to be exhibited to boys as they become initiated into the spirit world. Life size effigies, the heads of which are human skulls fleshed out with clay, dance as cavorting puppets in funeral ceremonies. The images are startling, even horrifying, but they are essential elements in the religious life of the people. Without the one, the other would disappear. Then we journey to the neighboring Solomon Islands and examine their magnificent war canoes, their sea spirit dances, and an anthropological phenomenon, Moro. This island mystic arose to say that the gods of the island wished the people to send the foreign Christians back home and once again worship the ancients.

EP7 Across the Frontiers Jul 08, 1975

Attenborough summarizes his exploration of tribal ways as seen through tribal arts. He explains that the structure of many tribal societies is so delicate that even apparently helpful ideas introduced from the outside can rock a community to its foundations and leave the people deeply confused, with no faith in the old and no real understanding of the new. Several contemporary examples of cross-cultural fertilization that produced worthy results are examined. Points out that it is an illusion that tribal societies have remained unchanged since time immemorial.

8.1| 0h30m| en| More Info

Released: 27 May 1975 Ended

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Country: United Kingdom

Budget: 0

Revenue: 0

Official Website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00tj9vh

Synopsis

David Attenborough explains the enormous growth of interest in tribal art, and explores the emotions which lie behind the masks and decorations of primitive people.

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David Attenborough

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Reviews

TheLittleSongbird As said many times, David Attenborough is a national treasure. He may apparently dislike the term, but it is hard to not say that about such a great presenter who has contributed significantly to some of the best programmes (of the documentary genre and overall).Sure, 'The Tribal Eye' may not be one of his best works. It may not be quite as visually stunning as his 1990s onwards work or as ground-breaking as 'Life on Earth' and one may not emotionally connect with it the way they do his nature documentaries with animals with all the mix of cute, fun, touching and frightening scenes. It is however really fascinating and wonderfully done, both informative and illuminating, and a must for anthropology and David Attenborough fans alike. 'The Tribal Eye' is something of a departure for Attenborough, especially if one is more familiar with his nature/animal documentaries, but having studied anthropology himself he is/was more than qualified to present it. All seven episodes are very good and more. While not perhaps cinematic, 'The Tribal Eye' is still beautifully and succinctly filmed with the fabulously atmospheric scenery and eye-catching artefacts being just as striking.Really liked the diversity of the music and how often it was like a character of its own and part of the cultures depicted. The information entertained, educated and transfixed.In terms of the facts there was a very good mix of the known ones and the unknown, some facts being familiar to us but most of it was unfamiliar to me which is what is meant by me being illuminated and educated by what was presented. The artefacts and anthropological and cultural aspects are presented in a way that's easy to understand and with love and awe of the subjects.Presenting by Attenborough helps significantly. He clearly knows his stuff and knows what to say and how to say it. He delivers it with his usual richness, soft-spoken enthusiasm and sincerity, never talking down to the viewer and keeping them riveted and wanting to know more. As hoped, what we're told is detailed, comprehensive and very honest.Overall, not one of Attenborough's crowning achievements but a must to see him in a departure series that he was nevertheless more than qualified to participate in. 9/10 Bethany Cox

The Tribal Eye