© Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University. Photo by Michael McKelvey.

ClassificationsAfrican Art

Figurative Vessel

Possible OriginCameroon, Africa

Possible OriginNigeria, Africa

CultureJen or Kwa

Date20th Century

MediumClay

Credit LineEx coll. William S. Arnett

Dimensions20 3/8 x 11 7/8 in. (51.8 x 30.2 cm)

Object number1994.004.707

Label TextVessels called ku'chan exemplify the transformation of utilitarian pots into ritual vessels through figuration: a face, hands, and genitals have been applied to this vessel. Ku'chan are used by Jen and Janjo communities residing in the Benue Valley region of Nigeria. By pouring offerings of beer and ground sprouted corn (evident on the surface of this vessel) over the pot, it is hoped that a benevolent spirit will take up residence within and secure prosperous game hunting for male Jen hunters. While female potters make ku'chan, it is men who interact with them in rituals. Nevertheless, because Jen men rely on women to make the vessels, women play a role in facilitating human interaction with the spirit world.
Exhibition HistoryThree Rivers of Nigeria: Art of the Lower Niger, Cross, and Benue from the Collection of William and Robert Arnett, The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Georgia, 1978
Art of Nigeria from the William S. Arnett Collection, Michael C. Carlos Museum, October 15, 1994 - January 2, 1995
Spirited Vessels: Creation and Ritual in African Ceramics, Michael C. Carlos Museum, February 7 - April 11, 2004
Published ReferencesMarcilene K. Wittmer and William Arnett, Three Rivers of Nigeria: Art of the Lower Niger, Cross, and Benue (Atlanta: The High Museum of Art, 1978), 106, number 250.

ProvenanceEx coll. William Arnett (1939-2020), Atlanta, Georgia, from at least 1978.

Status

Not on view

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