The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 9, 2023

Container

c. 1920

Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, possibly Ọ̀yọ́ region, Yorùbá-style carver

Wood, paint, and iron alloy

Overall: 45.7 cm (18 in.)

Gift of Katherine C. White 1974.208

Location

108A Sub-Saharan

Fun Fact

Yorùbá language distinguishes between "artist" and "carver" based on the object someone is making.

Description

Boxes carved into animal shapes, like this goose, held kolanuts. A source of caffeine, the kolanut seed is harvested from evergreen tree fruits. Guests to Yorùbá homes are offered the bitter nuts as a sign of hospitality; sometimes nut-filled boxes are placed on shrines. As birds are used as sacrifices, this box can be seen as a double offering of both fowl and fruit. The carver shaped and painted this waterfowl with great detail: rimmed eyes, alternating feather colors, and jointed legs ending in three-toed feet. According to a Cleveland Museum of Natural History ornithologist, these details suggest an Egyptian goose.

Provenance
?–1961
Julius Carlebach, New York 1
1961–1974
Katherine C. White [1929-1980], Gates Mills, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
1974–
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Provenance Footnotes

1 Memorandum from William D. Wixom to Ursula Korneitchouk and Del Gutridge. 12/18/74. CMA Archives
Citations
Kathman, Barbara A. A Cleveland Bestiary. Cleveland, OH; Cleveland Museum of Art, 1981. Reproduced: p. 54; Mentioned: p. 51, p. 62
Exhibition history

CMA 1968: "African Tribal Images: The Katherine White Reswick Collection," cat. no. 136, repr.

CMA 1975: "Year in Review 1974," CMA Bulletin LXII (March, 1975), p. 97, no. 20.

CMA 1981: A Cleveland Bestiary, cat. no. 49, repr. p. 54.

The Galleries at Cleveland State, OH (8/27/2014 - 10/4/2014): "At Home in Africa: Design, Beauty and Pleasing Irregularity in Domestic Settings", cat. no. 13-1, p. 216.

A Cleveland Bestiary. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 15-December 16, 1981).

At Home in Africa: Design, Beauty and Pleasing Irregularity in Domestic Settings. The Galleries at Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 26-October 4, 2014).

Arts of Africa: Gallery Rotation (African art rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (December 10, 2021-July 2, 2023).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1974.208