H x W x D: 25.1 x 6 x 4.4 cm (9 7/8 x 2 3/8 x 1 3/4 in.)
Type:
Figure
Geography:
Ghana
Date:
Mid-20th century
Label Text:
These dolls were given to young girls as toys. Adult women who wished to become pregnant or who wished to assure the birth of a healthy and beautiful child carried the figure in their wrapper.
Description:
Wood female figure with rectangular head, no arms, and legs broken off. The back of the head is divided into three panels--a central rosette, with crescents and cross hatching above and below. The face is on the lower fourth and consists of connected arched brows and nose. Pale green and coral colored tubular glass beads adorn the neck and worn down hair plugs are inserted into the top edge of the head.
Provenance:
Emil J. Arnold, New York, -- to 1968
Exhibition History:
African Sculpture, Princeton University Art Museum, February 2-March 14, 1971, no. 100
Published References:
Museum of African Art. 1971. African Sculpture at Princeton University from the Museum of African Art. Washington, D.C.: Museum of African Art, p. 22, no. 100.
Robbins, Warren and Nancy I. Nooter. 1989. African Art in American Collections. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, p. 206, no. 528.
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