The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 25, 2024

Figurine

Figurine

late 1800s-early 1900s
Wood, organic materials (including resin), iron, reed, tooth, seashell or glass beads, and possibly plastic
Overall: 12 x 4 x 4 cm (4 3/4 x 1 9/16 x 1 9/16 in.)
René and Odette Delenne Collection, Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund 2010.442
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

This small figure belonged to “the sorcerer of Loango,” chief of all sorcerers of that region (a province and port in West Central Africa).

Description

One of seven anthropomorphic figurines, these minkisi contained medicines in which an ancestral spirit was believed to reside. Minkisi were objects of communal use; if conflict arose between two citizens, the Nkisi figure, along with the nganga (ritual leader) helped resolve the dispute. This small figure belonged to “the sorcerer of Loango,” chief of all sorcerers of that region (a province and port in West Central Africa).
  • ?-1961
    (Unidentified art dealer, Nice, FR, 1961, sold to René and Odette Delenne)
    1961-2010
    René [1901-1998] and Odette Delenne [1925-2012], Brussels, BE, 2010, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2010
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 2010
  • Petridis, Constantine, et al. Fragments of the Invisible: The René and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art. Milan: 5 Continents Editions, 2013, 54-58. Mentioned: pp. 54-58, 113; reproduced: p. 58-60, cat. 19
  • Fragments of the Invisible: The Rene and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 27, 2013-February 9, 2014).
  • {{cite web|title=Figurine|url=false|author=|year=late 1800s-early 1900s|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2010.442