Artwork Page for Doll

Details / Information for Doll

Doll

1900s

Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Ibibio style, unknown artist

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Medium
Wood, kaolin, and paint
Credit Line
Gift of Harry W. Langworthy 1996.267.1
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Did You Know?

Dolls like this were sold at markets where they were purchased as symbolic playthings for girls or souvenirs for tourists.

Description

Young Ibibio girls would play with dolls for fun. The dolls also took on deeper significance when a girl entered seclusion to go through preparations for adulthood and marriage, representing her future children and promoting her fertility. The kaolin (white clay) that once covered the figures' bodies has been worn off, possibly through handling during play. Thin lines represent uli, a kind of body painting. Upraised, foreshortened hands with open fingers were typical of dolls carved by Ibibio people from the Anang group.
A light brown wood carving depicts a standing, doll-like figure with a tall, black headpiece tapering to a point. The oval face features narrow, downcast eyes above stubby arms bent toward the chest. Two carved lines wrap around the waist, accented with a red stripe. Black diagonal slashes mark the torso and short, blocky legs. Traces of white pigment cling to the textured surface, which ends in rough-hewn, unfinished feet.

Doll

1900s

Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Ibibio style, unknown artist

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