Pair of Dolls, 1900s

Pair of Dolls

1900s · Sculpture

May one see it?

Not receiving at present

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

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

Checked
In this state since
Source
The museum

About the sculpture

Young Ibibio girls would play with dolls for fun. They 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.

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Particulars

Accession number
1996.267

In the catalog

Sources

Neighbors at The Cleveland Museum of Art

Museum page