Madagascar

Madagascar is a large island off southeast Africa, home to many peoples whose histories connect Africa with the Indian Ocean. Tattoos, woven cloth, hairstyles and jewellery differed between its communities.

Older accounts describe geometric tattoos among Antandroy, Sakalava and Mahafaly people. Lines, crosses, chevrons and sun-like designs appeared on faces and bodies. Some Sakalava men had different patterns on each cheek rather than matching sides.

Tattoos could also carry a personal message. Names or initials remembered lovers, making a permanent mark part of someone's private story. Other patterns were associated with beauty or protection.

Cloth was just as important. The lamba, a wrapped textile, could be worn in daily life or used on ceremonial occasions and in honouring the dead. Rich silk mantles appeared at the nineteenth-century Merina court. Together, cloth and skin offered different surfaces for colour, pattern and memory.