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Couscous Platter

A work made of terracotta and pigment.

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  • A work made of terracotta and pigment.

Date:

Early/mid–20th century

Artist:

Aït Bouaddou or Aït Mendes
Bezzit or Merkala, Kabylie region, Algeria
Northern Africa and the Sahel

About this artwork

Female potters of the Aït Bouaddou and other Imazighen groups of Algeria’s mountainous Kabylie region embellish their ceramics for storing, preparing, and serving food with a variety of painted decorations. Drawing on a rich vocabulary of checkerboards, crosses, circles, and triangles, this boldly ornamented platter is enlivened with a symmetrical composition that develops outward from a central point.

Status

On View, Gallery 137

Department

Arts of Africa

Culture

Aït bou Addou

Title

Couscous Platter

Place

Algeria (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 1900–1975

Medium

Terracotta and pigment

Dimensions

7 × 43.2 cm (2 3/4 × 17 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Keith Achepohl

Reference Number

2005.282

Extended information about this artwork

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.

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