About this artwork
Writing in 1905 and 1906, the German ethnographer Leo Frobenius praised Songye pottery, attributing to it a “plainly astonishing beauty and a copious but measurable abundance of forms.” Indeed, Frobenius recorded over two hundred different types of Songye pots, many of which were variations on the tall-necked storage container.
This container demonstrates the stylistic variations-on-a-theme that characterize Songye pottery: it is embellished in a characteristically robust style, with deeply incised lines that emphasize the neck and shoulders. The chain of arches around the shoulders have a bouncing spontaneity. According to Frobenius, much of this kind of embellishment is added to a pot when it is still wet, while finer details are incised after it is leather hard. The surface is overlaid with a dense, crusty coating interrupted by areas of high sheen that suggest age and use. [See also 1995.149].
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Status
- Currently Off View
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Department
- Arts of Africa
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Culture
- Songye
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Title
- Storage Container (Mulondo)
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Place
- Democratic Republic of the Congo (Object made in)
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Date
- Made 1900–1950
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Medium
- Terracotta
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Dimensions
- 48.9 × 45.1 cm (19 1/4 × 17 3/4 in.)
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Credit Line
- Gift of Keith Achepohl
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Reference Number
- 2005.252
Extended information about this artwork
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