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Additional Views

Oct 27, 2009

Feb 16, 2012

Oct 27, 2009

Feb 16, 2012

Oct 27, 2009

Feb 16, 2012

Commemorative figure (lefem)

mid-1800s–1910

carver

probably carved by Ateu Atsa

(Bangwa, c. 1840–1910)

Africa, Central Africa, Cameroon, Bangwa Kingdom

Wood

Overall: 92.1 x 20.3 cm (36 1/4 x 8 in.)

Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1987.62

Location

108A Sub-Saharan

Did you know?

Ateu Atsa was both a famous and infamous artist! It is said that he enraged a ruler by portraying him realistically rather than in an idealized way, and was chased out of town after the sculpture was revealed.

Description

Adorned with royal attire consisting of a cap, beaded necklace, folded loincloth, and drinking horn, this figure was carved as a commemorative portrait of a historical king or high dignitary. It was kept by a secret association called Lefem, whose members gathered weekly in a sacred space in the forest to discuss matters related to the welfare of the kingdom. Standing in a royal shrine, the figure witnessed sacrifices made to the skulls of the chief’s ancestors. Meant to safeguard the kingdom and protect the fecundity of its inhabitants, it was also exhibited during funerals and royal ceremonies.

Video

Provenance

probably Ateu Atsa, Cameroon

Charles Ratton, Paris, France

Pace Primitive and Ancient Art, New York, NY

Cleveland Museum of Art by purchase 1987

Citations

Petridis, Constantijn. South of the Sahara: selected works of African art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003. Reproduced: cat. 30, p. 90 - 91

Lintig, Bettina von. 2014. “A Grasslands Beaded Leopard Skin.” Tribal Art: Quarterly Journal of the Art Culture and History of Traditional Peoples and New World Civilizations 18 (3) No. 72 Summer 2014 Pp 108-117.

Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 33

Lintig, Bettina von. "From Fontem to Berlin: The Long Journey of a Bangwa Lefem Staff." Tribal Art 19, no. 3 (Summer 2015): 130-135. Reproduced: p. 130, fig. 1

Exhibition history

CMA 1988: "Year in Review 1987," Bulletin 75 (February 1988), p. 70, no. 180, repr. p. 60.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC (October 4, 2011 - 1/29/2012): "Heroic Africans: Legendary Leaders, Iconic Sculptures", figure 118, p. 130.
The Cleveland Museum of Art (3/26/2017-7/16/2017); “African Master Carvers: Known and Famous”.

African Art: Recent Acquisitions. Pace Primitive and Ancient Art. New York, NY (October 24–December 6, 1986).

The Year in Review for 1987. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 24-April 17, 1988).

Heroic Africans: Legendary Leaders, Iconic Sculptures. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY (organizer) (September 21, 2011-January 29, 2012).

Gallery One 2012. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 12, 2012-March 5, 2017).

African Master Carvers: Known and Famous. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 26-July 16, 2017).

Cite this page

{{cite web|title=Commemorative figure (lefem)|url=https://clevelandart.org/art/1987.62|author=Ateu Atsa|year=mid-1800s–1910|access-date=29 May 2023|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

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Commemorative figure (lefem)

Commemorative figure (lefem)

probably carved by Ateu Atsa

Location

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Description

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