The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 18, 2024

Pendant

Pendant

1900s
Gold
Overall: 3.6 x 7.7 cm (1 7/16 x 3 1/16 in.)
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1952.85
Location: 108C Akan & Yoruba

Description

Gold objects, always cast using the lost-wax method, are the only Baule art forms associated with ancestor spirits. Usually hidden in pots or suitcases, gold adornments are displayed on important occasions such as funerals. They are laid out around the corpse before burial. A widow will wear them on a chain around her neck or attached to her hair at the ceremony signaling the end of mourning.
  • Sir Cecil Hamilton Armitage
    ?–1952
    (Heeramaneck Galleries, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1952–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Pendant|url=false|author=|year=1900s|access-date=18 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1952.85