Ask the Scholar

{
    "localId": "94894",
    "label": "Comb (cisakulo)",
    "core": "obj",
    "dtoType": "object"
}

{
    "id": "94894",
    "contentType": "object",
    "title": "Comb (cisakulo)",
    "description": "Chokwe women and men inserted finely decorated combs and pins in their hair to signal rank and wealth. Here, as among neighboring peoples, hairstyles reflected changing trends across place and over time. This comb's wooden material and sculptural top made it of a higher value than simple examples made from metal or cane. Its wide teeth were practical, securing elements of a hairstyle in place. The long-beaked <em>ngungu</em> birds with beaded necklaces were a well-known symbol of chiefly power. In addition to being a sign of beauty and good health, a well-styled hairdo also suggests that the wearer relies on the help of others in its creation. Combs were often gifted to women by admirers or husbands to mark important life events. This comb entered the Cleveland Museum of Art's collection in 1915, one year before the museum opened its doors.",
    "date": "mid- to late 1800s",
    "citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1915.453",
    "rights": "CC0",
    "rightsUri": "CC0",
    "language": "en",
    "wikidata": [
        "Q79475749"
    ],
    "genreSpecific": [
        "Jewelry"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1915.453/1915.453_web.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1915.453/1915.453_web.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1915.453/1915.453_web.jpg",
    "imageCount": 1,
    "source": "import",
    "dimensionsRaw": "Overall: 13.3 x 8 x 1.4 cm (5 1/4 x 3 1/8 x 9/16 in.)",
    "cul": [
        "Africa, Central Africa, Angola, or Democratic Republic of Congo, Chokwe-style"
    ],
    "accession": "1915.453"
}

{
    "tec": "Wood, glass beads, and natural fibers",
    "tombstone": "Comb (cisakulo), mid- to late 1800s. Africa, Central Africa, Angola, or Democratic Republic of Congo, Chokwe-style. Wood, glass beads, and natural fibers; overall: 13.3 x 8 x 1.4 cm (5 1/4 x 3 1/8 x 9/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Harold T. Clark Educational Extension Fund, 1915.453",
    "collection": "African Art",
    "didYouKnow": "The double birds on this comb are the <em>ngungu</em>, a kind of hornbill linked to hunting and the related power of leaders. They were considered a good omen, and served as mediators between the earthly world and the spiritual one.",
    "citations": [
        {
            "citation": "Petridis, Constantine. \"A New Installation for African Art in Cleveland.\" Tribal 3, no. 36 (Autumn/Winter 2004): 68-73."
        },
        {
            "citation": "Wixom, WIlliam D. \"African Art at the Cleveland Museum of Art.\" <em>African Arts</em>. 10, no. 3. (April 1977) 16-25.",
            "page_number": "Mentioned and Reproduced: p.16, fig. 1",
            "url": "https://www.jstor.org/stable/3335296"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Donley, Gregory M., \"A New Face for African Art\", Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine</em>. Vol. 42 no. 04, April 2002",
            "page_number": "Mentioned & reproduced: p. 6-7",
            "url": "https://archive.org/details/CMAMM2002-04/page/n5"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Petridis, Constantijn. <em>South of the Sahara: selected works of African art. </em>Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2003.",
            "page_number": "Reproduced: cat. 34, p. 98 - 99"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014.",
            "page_number": "Mentioned and reproduced: P. 40-41"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Rondeau, James, Constantijn Petridis, Yaëlle Biro, Herbert M. Cole, Kassim Kone, Babatunde Lawal, Wilfried Van Damme, and Susan Mullin Vogel.<em> The language of beauty in African art.</em> 2022."
        }
    ],
    "url": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1915.453",
    "creditline": "The Harold T. Clark Educational Extension Fund",
    "updatedAt": "2026-05-29 05:03:38.200000",
    "imageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1915.453/1915.453_print.jpg",
    "sourceId": 94894,
    "dept": "African Art",
    "coll": "African Art",
    "med": "Wood, glass beads, and natural fibers",
    "thumbnail_url": null,
    "image_url": null
}

{
    "seq": 1,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "photo",
    "url": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1915.453/1915.453_web.jpg",
    "mediaId": "28d7e55412968757"
}