Basket containing 57 charms of various types including figures, horns, shells and metal objects

Item

Title

Basket containing 57 charms of various types including figures, horns, shells and metal objects

Creator

Creator Unrecorded

Subject

Basket
Ceremonial

Description

Shallow circular basket woven from cane, containing 57 charms of various types. This was a kit used by a diviner. The contents includes nine human figures carved from wood. Two of these have metal embellishments around the necks of the figures and one has a shell embellishment on its head. One of the figures is carved in a bowed kneeling position. There are seven items made of horn, one of which has a metal embellishment, ten shells or items made with shells, and eleven items made from claws, teeth or bones, including a leopard tooth. There are four metal items including a coin which reads 'REPUBLICA PORTUGUESA 5 CENTAVOS' and 'ANGOLA 1922'. There are two glass objects and one string of black and white glass beads with a metal object, possibly a bullet casing, attached. The remaining items are natural materials or mixed media.

Publisher

Making African Connections

Date

c.1930

Type

PhysicalObject

Format

[Basket] Max H = 70 mm Max Diam = 210 mm

Identifier

ETH.ANG2.556
A36/556

Source

The Powell-Cotton Museum
Antoinette and Diana Powell-Cotton
1936

Space/Place

Angola
Africa

Rights

© The Powell-Cotton Trust