Description
Iron tacks inserted into the lobes of the hairdo indicate that this sculpture was originally empowered with magical and medicinal substances. Thus charged, the figure would have been used in divination and was related to a powerful association known as Bugabo. Members specialized in healing, hunting, and fighting crime.
Provenance
(Marcel Dumoulin, Brussels, BE, before 1967, sold to René and Odette Delenne) (?-1967); René [1901-1998] and Odette Delenne [1925-2012], Brussels, BE, 2010, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art (1967-2010); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 2010 (2010)
Accession Number
2010.457
Medium
Wood and iron
Dimensions
Overall: 20 x 6.8 x 8.5 cm (7 7/8 x 2 11/16 x 3 3/8 in.)
Classification
Sculpture
Credit Line
René and Odette Delenne Collection, Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund