The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Vessel

early 1900s

Central Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mangbetu, early 20th century

terracotta
Diameter: 17.1 cm (6 3/4 in.); Overall: 35 x 15.6 cm (13 3/4 x 6 1/8 in.)
The Mary Spedding Milliken Memorial Collection, Gift of William Mathewson Milliken 1992.69
Location: Not on view

Description

Women were and still are responsible for the making of terracotta pots among the Mangbetu. It seems, however, that men added the figurative elements that embellish examples like the one shown here. The depicted head with its elongated skull and halolike coiffure imitates the cranial deformation and hairstyle fashionable among female Mangbetu royalty at the beginning of the 20th century. Typically used for wine, many vessels were also explicitly made for sale to foreigners.
  • Turner, Evan H. “The Year in Review for 1992.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 80, no. 2 (February 1993): 38–79. Mentioned: p. 76 www.jstor.org
    Smith, Fred T., Judith Perani, Joseph L. Underwood, and Martha J. Ehrlich. The Visual Arts of Africa : Gender, Power, and Life Cycle Rituals. Second edition. New York: Oxford University Press, 2022. Mentioned and reproduced: p. 241-242, no. 8.11
  • {{cite web|title=Vessel|url=false|author=|year=early 1900s|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1992.69