The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of April 24, 2024
Bracelet and Anklet
before 1927
Part 1: 16 x 14.2 cm (6 5/16 x 5 9/16 in.); Part 2: 14.1 x 11.7 cm (5 9/16 x 4 5/8 in.)
Location: 108A Sub-Saharan
Did You Know?
From 1822 to 1847, the American Colonization Society colonized what became Liberia. Americo-Liberians (Congau) ruled until 1980. However, blacksmiths generally sourced brass for jewelry making from kettles or bullets brought by nearby French colonials from the 1890s onward.Description
Copper alloy bracelets and anklets historically signified a woman’s married status. They were bonded to her in life and removed following death. A blacksmith cast these heavy adornments. Given their weight, their owner couldn’t do domestic or farm work, showing others her privilege as a member of the elite leisure class. Slowed by this jewelry, her movements sent bells jingling in the hollow balls. Following a 1930s economic collapse, women stopped wearing the bracelets to take part in manual labor. At the same time, a national decree outlawed them; many were melted down.- 1927/28Collected by Willett Rankin Wilson in Liberia, 197/281927/28–1982Willett Rankin Wilson, Lyndhurst, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art1982–The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OHProvenance Footnotes1 Memorandum from Virginia Crawford to Dr. Lee, 12-8-82, curatorial file2 The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1984, p. 76,
- Arts of Africa: Gallery Rotation (African art rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (December 10, 2021-July 2, 2023).The Year in Review for 1983. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 22-April 8, 1984).
- {{cite web|title=Bracelet and Anklet|url=false|author=|year=before 1927|access-date=24 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1982.341