id
152856
Institution
Art Institute of Chicago Edo designations
English designations
Commemorative Head
Categories
Altar & Shrine Objects
Heads
Location
111 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60603, United States
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Iconographies
1
annotations
Odigba
Coral beaded collar
1 annotation
Provenance
4
events
Institution data
Art Institute of Chicago
The data was downloaded via a public data access of the institution.
Last updated: 2021-02-08
Language: english
| Institution field | Value |
|---|---|
accession object id | 1999.375 |
id object id | 152856 |
main_reference_number object id | 1999.375 |
title/0 designation | Commemorative Head |
description description | <p>Benin brass-casters traditionally make commemorative heads in both terracotta and brass. This terracotta head is distinguished by its fleshy, idealized facial features, scarification patterns above each eye, stylized hairstyle—arranged in a series of horizontal rows—and snuggly worn beaded collar. The fullness of the cheeks is best perceived from a profile view, and the delicate modeling of the eyes, nose, and lips testifies to the sensitivity and skill of the artist.</p> <p>In the Kingdom of Benin, in southeastern Nigeria, the creation and display of ancestral commemorative heads is an ancient practice extending back to the first dynasty, before the 14th century. The heads were made of different materials to suit the varied political and social status of their owners. Sometime after the 14th century royal commemorative heads were cast in brass; however, oral tradition suggests that terracotta heads adorned royal altars at an earlier time. More recently, terracotta heads have functioned to commemorate important members of the brass-casters’ guild, adorning their ancestral altars.</p> <p>Like the brass commemorative heads, this terracotta head has a hole on the crown. In the case of the brass heads, this hollowed-out space served to hold an ivory tusk, a symbol of royal prestige and power. Although it has been suggested that the holes on the terracotta heads served the same function, this seems unlikely given the fragility of terracotta and the exclusive royal claim for ivory.</p> <p>–Permanent Collection Object Description</p> |
thumbnail/alt_text description | A work made of terracotta. |
material_titles material | terracotta; inorganic material; ceramic |
medium_display material | Terracotta |
dimensions dimensions | 24.1 × 15.2 × 18.4 cm (9 1/2 × 6 × 7 1/4 in.) |
classification_title object type | earthenware |
classification_titles object type | earthenware; arts of Africa; ceramics; sculpture; african art |
term_titles object type | earthenware; terracotta; edo (african); May 2020; arts of Africa; Arts of Africa; inorganic material; ceramics; sculpture; african art; african Art; ceramic; Coastal West Africa |
color/h colour | 5 |
color/l colour | 48 |
color/percentage colour | 0.025521129414032676 |
color/population colour | 233 |
color/s colour | 21 |
subject_titles iconography | |
date_display date made | Probably mid–17th/mid–18th century |
date_end date made | 1750 |
date_start date made | 1650 |
artist_title ethnic attribution producer | Edo |
artist_titles producer | Edo |
technique_titles production technique | |
place_of_origin production place | Nigeria |
credit_line prior source | Gift of Richard Faletti, the Faletti Family Collection |
provenance_text provenance | William Wright Gallery, New York, N.Y., by 1984; sold to Richard J. Faletti (died 2006) and Barbara Faletti (died 2000), Chicago, Ill. and Phoenix, Ariz., 1984; given to the Art Institute, 1999. |
artist_display ethnic attribution | Edo, Court of Benin Nigeria Coastal West Africa |
department_title department and institution | Arts of Africa |
exhibition_history exhibition history | Art Institute of Chicago, African Artistry: Gifts from the Faletti Family Collection, Oct. 5–May 18, 2003, Gallery 142, no. cat. |
publication_history bibliography | Warren M. Robbins and Nancy Ingram Nooter, African Art in American Collections (Smithsonian Institution Press, 1989), pp. 213 (ill.). |
collection_status legal status | Permanent Collection |
is_public_domain license | true |
alt_image_ids images | |
image_id images | 2b923635-7f1b-7034-b0e8-d5a3d3287716 |
api_link weblink | https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/152856 |
api_model weblink | artworks |
alt_classification_ids | TM-14182; TM-46; TM-13; TM-13486 |
alt_material_ids | TM-2600; TM-2432 |
alt_style_ids | TM-14183; TM-13489; TM-13566 |
alt_subject_ids | |
alt_technique_ids | |
artist_id | 37838 |
artist_ids | 37838 |
category_ids | PC-1 |
category_titles | Arts of Africa |
classification_id | TM-74 |
classification_ids | TM-74; TM-14182; TM-46; TM-13; TM-13486 |
date_qualifier_id | |
date_qualifier_title | |
department_id | PC-1 |
document_ids | |
fiscal_year | 2000 |
gallery_id | |
gallery_title | |
has_educational_resources | false |
has_multimedia_resources | false |
has_not_been_viewed_much | false |
internal_department_id | 43 |
is_boosted | false |
is_on_view | false |
is_zoomable | true |
last_updated | 2021-02-02T11:49:04-06:00 |
last_updated_source | 2020-09-12T16:09:57-05:00 |
latitude | |
latlon | |
longitude | |
material_id | TM-2433 |
material_ids | TM-2433; TM-2600; TM-2432 |
max_zoom_window_size | -1 |
pageviews | 573 |
pageviews_recent | 12 |
publishing_verification_level | Web Cataloged |
sound_ids | |
style_id | TM-6251 |
style_ids | TM-6251; TM-14183; TM-13489; TM-13566 |
style_title | edo (african) |
style_titles | edo (african); Arts of Africa; african Art; Coastal West Africa |
subject_id | |
subject_ids | |
technique_id | |
technique_ids | |
text_ids | |
thumbnail/height | 2250 |
thumbnail/width | 1751 |
timestamp | 2021-02-08T12:51:30-06:00 |
title/1/weight | 573 |
Sensitive Content
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