Water Bottle

Arts of Africa

Mid–20th century

Lozi or Mbunda
Zambia
Eastern and Southern Africa

With its rounded lip, somber palette, and precisely composed decoration, this bottle displays an austere approach to form and embellishment. Bottles such as this are traded into Zambia’s northwest province, where they are called “African refrigerators” for their excellent ability to keep water cool by slow evaporations through the porous ceramic.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Arts of Africa

Culture: Lozi
Title: Water Bottle
Place: Zambia (Object made in)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: Made 1925–1975
Medium: Terracotta and pigment
Dimensions: 35.6 × 28.6 cm (14 × 11 1/4 in.)
Credit Line: Gift of Keith Achepohl
Reference Number: 2005.257

Kathleen Bickford Berzock, For Hearth and Altar: African Ceramics from the Keith Achepohl Collection (The Art Institute and Yale University Press, 2005), pp. 186-187.

Art Institute of Chicago, For Hearth and Altar: African Ceramics from the Keith Achepohl Collection, Dec. 3, 2005–Feb. 20, 2006, cat. 121.

Unnamed owner, United States, about 1990; sold to Douglas Dawson Gallery, Chicago, Ill., about 1995; sold to Keith Achepohl, Iowa City, Iowa, by 2005; given to the Art Institute, 2005.

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

Suggested Terms

See all hours

Currently Off View

Date:

Artist:

About this artwork

Status

Department

Culture

Title

Place

Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Medium

Dimensions

Credit Line

Reference Number

Extended information about this artwork

Publication History

Exhibition History

Provenance

Share

Explore Further

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.

Gallery actions

Image actions

Share