ART WIKI
Female Figure (Ntkekpe), Igbo, Mid–20th century
Igbo

Female Figure (Ntkekpe)

Mid–20th century · Sculpture

Can I see it?

Not on view at present

Where is “Female Figure (Ntkekpe)” now? Collection: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago. Not on view at present. Checked October 12, 2026.

Art Institute of Chicago

Chicago, United States

It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.

Checked
In this state since
Source
The museum
On the mapMuseum page
Embed

About the sculpture

Among the Igbo, women are typically responsible for making pottery and other ceramic sculpture. Terracotta figures like this example would have been part of a shrine or placed in a domestic garden or at the entrance of a compound. The figure is seated on a traditional three-tiered Igbo stool and wears anklets, bracelets, and thick coils of waist beads, all indicators of her high status and wealth.

Art Institute of ChicagoCC BY 4.0

Details

Accession number
2003.84

What it shows

WomanProtectorShrinesStatus

In the catalog

SculptureTerracotta and ceramicsModernism20th centuryIgboArts of AfricaAfrican ArtCoastal West AfricaNigeria

Sources

More by Igbo

All works
Mask, Igbo, 19th/20th century

Mask

19th/20th century · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Face Mask (Agbogho Mmuo), Igbo, Early/mid–20th century

Face Mask (Agbogho Mmuo)

Early/mid–20th century · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Time of the Brave Mask (Mgbedike), Igbo, Early/mid–20th century

Time of the Brave Mask (Mgbedike)

Early/mid–20th century · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Face Mask (Agbogho Mmuo), Igbo, Late 19th or early 20th century

Face Mask (Agbogho Mmuo)

Late 19th or early 20th century · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Mask (Ogbodo Enyi), Igbo, Early/mid–20th century

Mask (Ogbodo Enyi)

Early/mid–20th century · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Stool, Igbo, Late 19th or early 20th century

Stool

Late 19th or early 20th century · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

Shrine Figure (Ntkekpe), Igbo, Mid–20th century

Shrine Figure (Ntkekpe)

Mid–20th century · Not on view · Art Institute of Chicago

On view at Art Institute of Chicago

Museum page
The Bedroom, Vincent van Gogh, 1889

Vincent van Gogh

The Bedroom, 1889

A Sunday on La Grande Jatte — 1884, Georges Seurat, 1884–86, border added 1888–89

Georges Seurat

A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, 1884–86, border added 1888–89

Paris Street; Rainy Day, Gustave Caillebotte, 1877

Gustave Caillebotte

Paris Street; Rainy Day, 1877

Two Sisters (On the Terrace), Pierre-Auguste Renoir, 1881

Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Two Sisters (On the Terrace), 1881

The Basket of Apples, Paul Cézanne, c. 1893

Paul Cézanne

The Basket of Apples, c. 1893

Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer), Claude Monet, 1890–91

Claude Monet

Stacks of Wheat (End of Summer), 1890–91

American Gothic, Grant Wood, 1930

Grant Wood

American Gothic, 1930

Nighthawks, Edward Hopper, 1942

Edward Hopper

Nighthawks, 1942

On the same theme · Woman

All works on the theme
Madame Roulin and Her Baby, Vincent van Gogh, 1888

Vincent van Gogh

Madame Roulin and Her Baby, 1888

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Garden at Sainte-Adresse, Claude Monet, 1867

Claude Monet

Garden at Sainte-Adresse, 1867

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Condesa de Altamira and Her Daughter, María Agustina, Goya, 1787–88

Francisco de Goya

Condesa de Altamira and Her Daughter, María Agustina, 1787–88

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Two Women on the Shore, Edvard Munch, 1898

Edvard Munch

Two Women on the Shore, 1898

Rijksmuseum

Young Woman with a Water Pitcher, Johannes Vermeer, ca. 1662

Johannes Vermeer

Woman with a Water Jug, ca. 1662

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Study of a Young Woman, Johannes Vermeer, ca. 1665–67

Johannes Vermeer

Portrait of a Young Woman, ca. 1665–67

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Mrs. Gunn on Porch, Independence, California, Ansel Adams, 1944, printed 1981

Ansel Adams

Mrs. Gunn on Porch, Independence, California, 1944, printed 1981

Not on view · National Gallery of Art

Spanish American Woman, near Chimayo, New Mexico, Ansel Adams, 1937, printed 1981

Ansel Adams

Spanish American Woman, near Chimayo, New Mexico, 1937, printed 1981

Not on view · National Gallery of Art