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Mother with child (Mask)

late 19th century/early 20th century

MARKK

MARKK
Hamburg, Germany

This portrayal of a “mother with child”, carved out of wood, was given to the museum in 1906 by the explorer Leo Frobenius. The arms of the mother figure and the body of the child are formed out of cloth. Cowry shells and glass beads were used to represent fingernails and jewellery. Regrettably, Frobenius did not provide exact information about the use of the figure. Up to now it has been presumed that it either served as a crest mask in initiation ceremonies or was employed in funeral rites.

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  • Title: Mother with child (Mask)
  • Date Created: late 19th century/early 20th century
  • Type: Mask
  • Publisher: Museum of Ethnology Hamburg
  • Rights: Museum of Ethnology Hamburg | Photo: Paul Schimweg
  • External Link: Homepage Museum für Völkerkunde Hamburg
  • Medium: wood (painted), bast, cloth, cowry shells, glass beads
  • on display: Africa's Top Models
  • Date of Acquisition: 1906
  • Context of Origin: Kuba – Democratic Republic of the Congo
  • Collection: Coll. Leo Frobenius
MARKK

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