Jug
Artist/Maker
Chokwe people
(Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola and Zambia) Datenot dated
Mediumpottery
DimensionsOverall: 11 x 8 1/2 in. (27.9 x 21.6 cm)
ClassificationsContainers
Credit LineGift of Alan Potamkin
Object number2012.2.33
DescriptionThis is a water jar in the burnished blackware characteristic of the Chokwe and their Lunda and Lwena neighbors. Individuals of high status owned vessels with figurative decoration. The head on this jar is fairly simple and the hairstyle indicates that it is probably a woman, perhaps a reference to the ubiquitous female ancestor. Instead of a spout, the opening of the vessel is the mouth of the face. The only other decoration on the vessel consists of incised herringbone and crosshatched bands around the widest part of the body.
