Vol. I · The open image paperWinnipeg · Musée sans mursRecovered · Remembered · Returned
Cleveland Museum of Art168759portraitlate 1800s–early 1900sCC0cma african-global-heritage symbols-patterns flora-fauna objects-with-gravity african global heritage symbols patterns flora fauna objects with gravity african sculpture wood carving figure statue ritual tribal art dark wood brown abstract geometric textile rope jewelry culture art primitive folk art female pairlate 1800s–early 1900s Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo, probably Ngbandi-style carver Wood, iron alloy, glass beads, plant fiber, and cloth Sculpture African DecorativeAfrican & Global Heritage Symbols & Ornament The Living World Objects with Gravity
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Female Figure of a Pair (late 1800s–early 1900s). René and Odette Delenne Collection, Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund Rights: CC0. https://clevelandart.org/art/2010.459.2
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From the museum record
One of a pair, this female figure is adorned with metal, bead, and shell ornaments at the ears, waist, and ankles. Each figure has a series of vertically aligned bumps on the forehead. These represent highly raised keloid scars that were culturally meaningful forms of body modification. Carving of paired figures is well documented among the Ngbandi and their neighbors, the Ngbaka-Minagende, where such sculptures are said to represent the mythical ancestor Seto and his sister-wife, Nabo. Field-based research cannot confirm the existence of figurative couples among the Ngbandi.
Lupin’s visual index
A dark-brown wooden figure, likely from West Africa, stands upright with intricate detailing and adornments.
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