Object Number: A227
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Institution data
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Barnes Foundation
The data was transferred directly by the institution.
Last Updated: 2021-09-14
Language: English
Object NumberObject ID
A227
TitleDesignation
Hip Ornament or Pendant
DescriptionDescription
A small mask with large eyes, a diamond pattern across the forehead, and a series of rings along the hairline.
MediumMaterial
Copper alloy
DimensionsDimensions
Overall: 5 x 4 1/4 x 1 7/8 in. (12.7 x 10.8 x 4.8 cm)
Overall (with mount): 7 1/2 x 4 1/4 x 3 3/8 in. (19.1 x 10.8 x 8.6 cm)
Mount: 7 3/8 x 3 5/16 x 2 13/16 in. (18.7 x 8.4 x 7.1 cm)
ClassificationObject Type
Jewelry
Object NameObject Type
Pendants
Mark(s)Inscriptions
In blue crayon on bottom of mount: "14"; Inagaki seal impressed on back of vertical support of mount
DatedDate Made
19th–early 20th century
Place madeProduction Place
Benin City, Nigeria, Africa
ProvenancePrior Source
A. A. Feder; purchased by Albert C. Barnes from Paul Guillaume, Paris, December 1922
CultureEthnic Attribution
Edo
DepartmentDepartment and Institution
Gallery
Curatorial RemarksNotes
This type of "mask" was actually designed to be worn at the waist as part of the regalia of a Benin king. This example, cast in copper alloy, takes the form of a face with incised scarification on the cheeks and forehead. It appears to be a later example, possibly post-1897 (the date of the British Punitive Expedition that sacked Benin), or may even have been the work of a neighboring Ijebu-Yoruba artist.
(Dr. Christa Clarke, March 2003)
Exhibition HistoryExhibition History
BibliographyBibliography
Clarke, Christa. African Art in the Barnes Foundation: The Triumph of L'Art nègre and the Harlem Renaissance. New York: Skira Rizzoli, 2015, 180, 182, pl. 33b.
Medgyes, Ladislas. "The Art of the African ------." International Studio (November 1922): 143 "A Mask in Black Bronze from Benin (collection of A. A. Feder)."
Published ReferencesBibliography
President's Files, receipt from Paul Guillaume, December 1922, no. 14 "Masque Bénin" (AR.ABC.1922.70)
Barnes Foundation
The data was transferred directly by the institution.
Last Updated: 2022-06-01
Language: English
Accession NumberObject ID
A227
TitleDesignation
Hip Ornament or Pendant
Long DescriptionDescription
Sort DescriptionDescription
MediumMaterial
Copper alloy
DimensionsDimensions
Overall: 5 x 4 1/4 x 1 7/8 in. (12.7 x 10.8 x 4.8 cm)Overall (with mount): 7 1/2 x 4 1/4 x 3 3/8 in. (19.1 x 10.8 x 8.6 cm)Mount: 7 3/8 x 3 5/16 x 2 13/16 in. (18.7 x 8.4 x 7.1 cm)
YearDate Made
19th–early 20th century
ArtistProducer
Unidentified Maker
CultureEthnic Attribution
Edo
Exhibition HistoryExhibition History
LocationDisplay Status
On View: Room 21, West Wall
Viewing StatusDisplay Status
Currently on view
BibliographyBibliography
Clarke, Christa. African Art in the Barnes Foundation: The Triumph of L'Art nègre and the Harlem Renaissance. New York: Skira Rizzoli, 2015, 180, 182, pl. 33b.
Medgyes, Ladislas. "The Art of the African ------." International Studio (November 1922): 143 "A Mask in Black Bronze from Benin (collection of A. A. Feder)."
Copyright StatusLicense
Copyright Undetermined