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{
    "localId": "152164",
    "label": "Mask (mbap mteng): Elephant (aka)",
    "core": "obj",
    "dtoType": "object"
}

{
    "id": "152164",
    "contentType": "object",
    "title": "Mask (mbap mteng): Elephant (aka)",
    "description": "The name given to masks like this, <em>mbap mteng</em>, means \"animal with huge ears.\" In the Cameroon Grassfields kingdoms, the elephant signifies power, authority, prestige, and leadership. The colorful glass beads that decorate the mask’s surface were imported from Venice and Bohemia (in Europe) and signal wealth and prosperity. Its geometric patterns include triangles that evoke the leopard, another animal linked with royal power. Members of <em>Kuosi</em>, an elite male society, wore such elephant masks for ritual dances and funerary ceremonies. This mask would have been worn with a costume that included a feather headdress",
    "date": "early 1900s",
    "citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1985.1082",
    "rights": "CC0",
    "rightsUri": "CC0",
    "language": "en",
    "genreSpecific": [
        "Mask"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1985.1082/1985.1082_web.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1985.1082/1985.1082_web.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1985.1082/1985.1082_web.jpg",
    "imageCount": 1,
    "source": "import",
    "dimensionsRaw": "Overall: 139.7 x 50.8 x 19.1 cm (55 x 20 x 7 1/2 in.)",
    "cul": [
        "Africa, Central Africa, Cameroon, Grassfields region, Bamileke-style maker"
    ],
    "accession": "1985.1082"
}

{
    "tec": "Cotton, burlap, glass beads, twine, leather, and wood",
    "tombstone": "Mask (mbap mteng): Elephant (aka), early 1900s. Africa, Central Africa, Cameroon, Grassfields region, Bamileke-style maker. Cotton, burlap, glass beads, twine, leather, and wood; overall: 139.7 x 50.8 x 19.1 cm (55 x 20 x 7 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Harold T. Clark Educational Extension Fund, 1985.1082",
    "collection": "African Art",
    "didYouKnow": "Performers wore elephant masks with indigo-dyed robes, red feather headdresses, and leopard pelts. Leopards and elephants symbolized royal power.",
    "citations": [
        {
            "citation": "Dr. Kristen Laciste, \"Elephant Mask (Bamileke Peoples),\" in <em>Smarthistory</em>, June 7, 2023, <a href=\"https://smarthistory.org/elephant-mask-kuosi-society-bamileke-peoples-cameroon/\">https://smarthistory.org/elephant-mask-kuosi-society-bamileke-peoples-cameroon/</a>.",
            "url": "https://smarthistory.org/elephant-mask-kuosi-society-bamileke-peoples-cameroon/"
        },
        {
            "citation": "\"African Dress.\" <em>HALI </em>224 (Summer 2025): 38-41.",
            "page_number": "Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 39, fig. 5"
        }
    ],
    "url": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1985.1082",
    "creditline": "The Harold T. Clark Educational Extension Fund",
    "updatedAt": "2026-05-29 07:51:59.892000",
    "imageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1985.1082/1985.1082_print.jpg",
    "sourceId": 152164,
    "dept": "African Art",
    "coll": "African Art",
    "med": "Cotton, burlap, glass beads, twine, leather, and wood",
    "thumbnail_url": null,
    "image_url": null
}

{
    "seq": 1,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "photo",
    "url": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1985.1082/1985.1082_web.jpg",
    "mediaId": "99c4b7f6bbbcabd6"
}