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Source Description
Such stools were highly prized by their female owners. Sculpted by master artists with widespread reputations, they were often "signed" with a deeply cut mark on the base. This groove was then filled with red camwood as an expression of blessings and good wishes for the stool's owner.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
110790
label
Stool
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
110790
contentType
object
title
Stool
description
Such stools were highly prized by their female owners. Sculpted by master artists with widespread reputations, they were often "signed" with a deeply cut mark on the base. This groove was then filled with red camwood as an expression of blessings and good wishes for the stool's owner.
date
by 1928
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q80002883
genreSpecific
Furniture and woodwork
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Diameter: 39.1 cm (15 3/8 in.); Overall: 28.6 cm (11 1/4 in.)
cul
Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mangbetu-style maker
accession
1929.32
Source extras
tec
wood
tombstone
Stool, by 1928. Africa, Central Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mangbetu-style maker. Wood; diameter: 39.1 cm (15 3/8 in.); overall: 28.6 cm (11 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of the Gilpin Players of Karamu House, 1929.320
collection
African Art
didYouKnow
In 1928, Paul Travis photographed the Mangbetu queen who once owned this stool as she sat on it.
citations
citation
Berzock, Kathleen Bickford, and Christa Clarke. 2011. <em>Representing Africa in American Art Museums : A Century of Collecting and Display</em>. Seattle: University of Washington Press, p. 107, fig. 5.3.
citation
Boger, Ann C. et al. Paul B. Travis Africa 1927-1928. Cleveland Museum of Art, 1982. p. 35.
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: p. 16; p. 18, fig. 3
citation
Petridis, Constantijn, et al. <em>Fragments of the Invisible: The René and Odette Delenne Collection of Congo Sculpture.</em> Cleveland, Ohio : Cleveland Museum of art ; Milan : 5 Continents Editions, 2013.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 107
citation
Petridis, Constantine. "A World of Great Art for Everyone." In <em>Representing Africa in American Art Museums: A Century of Collecting and Display</em>. Kathleen Bickford Berzock and Christa Clarke, 104-121. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2011.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 106; reproduced: p. 107, figs. 5.2, 5.3
creditline
Gift of the Gilpin Players of Karamu House
updatedAt
2026-05-29 05:52:34.993000
sourceId
110790
dept
African Art
coll
African Art
med
wood
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
c6cebe50b86c5247