The name is absent

bounded object with various mixtures from the earth. According to Lindblom, the
kipitu, as he called it, consisted of the tusk of a warthog or antelope horn and
was combined with food, soil, and field-products.²³ In both accounts the contents
were hidden adding to the mysterious nature of the object and the oath.

Documents revealing the oathing process also show that there was a

degree of variance between how oathing was administered. Despite the
differences, there were often shared fundamental principles and characteristics
of the process. Ainsworth reports the following on the kithito oathing practices as
recorded in 1910:

“The Kithito is placed on 3 small stones between two twigs of the Mbou tree
with the Hyena dung facing due East. The man then taking the Oath stands
on his heals on two small stones about three feet away with his back to the
sun, holding in his hand a twig of the Mobou tree, and at the time of taking the
Oath he touches the Kithito with the twig. The man who carries the Kithito is
not allowed to partake of any food until he has smeared his face, hands and
legs with sheep’s fat.”²⁴

Ainsworth’s reported descriptions on the use of the Kithito oathing show a level of
consistency between the oathing accounts documented by Charles Dundas. In
both accounts the kithito was the center object that was beaten with a twig and
the oather was expected to stand on small stones while taking the oath as a
means for releasing the power of the oath. Lindblom describes this process as
the kipitu oathing process. Based on his records, oathers were required to stand
on the stones during the oathing ceremony as a method to strengthen the oath

²³LindbIom, The Akamba in British East Africa, 167.

²⁴ Report from District Commissioners Office Kutui, report written by James B. Ainsworth. KNA Syracuse
Collection, Machakos Annual Report, 1909, Film 2801 Roll 8p. 16.

²⁴ Report from District Commissioners Office Kutui, report written by James B. Ainsworth. KNA Syracuse
Collection, Machakos Annual Report, 1909, Film 2801 Roll 8, p. 16.

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