Ivory Figure

unidentified Congolese

Congolese

----

undated

This tiny figure is carved from the tusk of a bush pig or of a hippopotomus. The rich, transluscent orange-red patina is the result of the application of palm oil, and the features have been softened by years of wear strung across one shoulder suspended beneath an arm. This example bears the circle-and-dot motif that is ubiquitous on ivories everywhere in the world, from the Arctic Circle to the grasslands and forests of Zaire. Although Joseph Cornet states that such objects remind the wearer of a deceased relative, it is far more likely that they represent vidye, spirits of nature and the wilderness, and are intended to protect the wearer from disasters of all kinds. All are pierced transversely behind the breasts for suspension. -- Professor Christopher Roy, School of Art and Art History, University of Iowa

Southern Savannah
Africa
Congo (Zaire)

Luba

Height: 3 3/8 inches
Width: 7/8 inches
Depth: 1 1/4 inches

Ivory

The Stanley Collection

University of Iowa. Stanley Museum of Art

X1990_638

7/5/2007

U.S. and international copyright laws protect this digital image. Commercial use or distribution of the image is not permitted without prior permission of the copyright holder. For permission to use the digital image, please complete an image request form http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/forms/uima or contact the University of Iowa Museum of Art.

Contact the Stanley Museum of Art at the University of Iowa: https://stanleymuseum.uiowa.edu/about/contact/

ivories

183425165

Pendant

Governance
Spirit