The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of March 26, 2024
Ceremonial Ladle (Wunkirmian or Wakemia)
possibly late 1800s or early 1900s
Overall: 56.8 x 11.2 x 7 cm (22 3/8 x 4 7/16 x 2 3/4 in.)
Location: not on view
Did You Know?
This ladle was a status symbol for a notable woman.Description
An emblem of great prestige, this human-shaped ladle would have been owned by a distinguished married woman recognized for her talents as a farmer and her exceptional generosity and hospitality. One of her responsibilities was to host a grand Feast of Merit when she, along with other highly respected women, prepared food for a large number of local and foreign guests. During the feast the women danced brandishing their rice-filled ladles while singing in strident voices.- 1934-1985Pierre-Paul Grassé by field-collection (inv. P.P.G.5)1985-2013Grassé family, by descent2013(Christie's, Paris, France, "African and Oceanic Art," Sale 3553 Lot 94, June 19, 2013, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)2013-The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Grunne, Bernard de, Hans Himmelheber, and Eberhard Fischer. Dan: la danse des cuillères = dancing with spoons. 2019, 5-6, 78. Mentioned: pp. 5-6; reproduced: p. 78, cat. 26.Rondeau, James, Constantijn Petridis, Yaëlle Biro, Herbert M. Cole, Kassim Kone, Babatunde Lawal, Wilfried Van Damme, and Susan Mullin Vogel. The language of beauty in African art. 2022.
- The Language of Beauty in African Art. Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, TX (April 3-July 31, 2022) https://kimbellart.org/exhibition/language-beauty-african-art; The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL (organizer) (November 20, 2022-February 27, 2023) https://www.artic.edu/exhibitions/9344/the-language-of-beauty-in-african-art.
- {{cite web|title=Ceremonial Ladle (Wunkirmian or Wakemia)|url=false|author=|year=possibly late 1800s or early 1900s|access-date=26 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2013.52