Currently not on view
Lidded cosmetic box,
late 19th–20th century
In the hands of Kuba artists, everyday containers became exceptional works of art with inventive shapes and rich surface decoration. The two cosmetic boxes would have contained beads, costume elements, or tukula, a red cosmetic powder; the vessel held palm wine. Their elaborate geometric patterns mirror those found on raffia cloths and draw from a heritage of courtly prestige objects dating to at least the sixteenth century. The round box, which features native repair, recalls a type of woven Kuba basket. Atop the square box is a carved weevil, or ntshyeem, an insect symbolically associated with the enduring powers of the king.
More Context
Handbook Entry
Kuba artists, including those of the Shoowa peoples, are known for their use of intricate geometric designs and unusual shapes. Boxes and vessels, such as the examples shown here, as well as cups, pipes, knives, and other domestic items, are carved with rich surface decorations in low relief. Each surface on the square box is carved in a different pattern to increase the work’s visual interest from many angles. Such intermingling of motifs is typical of Shoowa decoration. Atop the box is a carved weevil, or <em>ntshyeem</em>, an insect symbolically associated with the enduring powers of the king. The round box has a squared lid that incorporates an octagonal pattern to draw the viewer’s eye. The wooden boxes, created for personal prestige, would have contained razors, beads, costume elements, or twool, a red cosmetic powder obtained at great expense. Carved to give a sense of depth, the vessel or goblet displays an ornate surface overlaid with a repeating pattern of intertwined bands. The design reflects traditional Kuba textile patterns found on raffia pile and bark cloths.
Information
late 19th–20th century
Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
<p>John B. Elliott, New York, NY by 1987; Princeton University Art Museum, 1998</p>
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"Selected checklist of objects in the collection of African art," <em>Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University</em> 58, no. 1/2 (1999): p. 77–83., p. 80
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<p>"The checklist of the John B. Elliott Bequest," <em>Record of the Princeton University Art Museum </em>61 (2002): p. 49-99.</p>, p. 84
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<em>Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collection</em> (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2007), 331 (illus.)
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<em>Princeton University Art Museum: Handbook of the Collections </em>(Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Art Museum, 2013), p. 349
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