© Michael C. Carlos Museum, Emory University

ClassificationsAfrican Art

Pipe Bowl

Place CreatedZambia, Africa

CultureLuvale

Date20th Century

MediumTerracotta, pigment

Credit LineEx coll. William S. Arnett

Dimensions4 5/8 x 5 7/8 x 2 15/16 in. (11.7 x 15 x 7.5 cm)

Object number1994.004.572

Label TextPipe smoking has been a popular pastime among men and women in many African societies since the 1500s, when tobacco from America was introduced on the continent. Pipes used daily were small functional items, modest in decoration. Other pipes, like those shown here, were made on commission as prestige articles for individual patrons to have at hand during ceremonial functions. For these pipes, inspired craftsmen ingeniously fused form with function, abstract design with human and animal imagery, and visual pleasure with utility. For example, the pipe maker could manipulate animal forms to create the "body'' of the pipe bowl and legs"" on which the bowl could rest in a balanced position on the ground. The pipe bowls were matched with wooden or metal stems, often as richly decorated as the bowl itself or sheathed in tin or nickel, which further enhanced their value. The features of a pipe not only indicated the owner's appreciation of beauty and shape, but also the owner's social status.
Exhibition HistoryThe Art of Collecting: Recent Acquisitions at the Michael C. Carlos Museum, Michael C. Carlos Museum, November 8, 1997 - January 4, 1998
MCCM Permanent Collection Installation, Rotation 3, September 26, 1998 - Spring 2003
MCCM Permanent Collection Installation, July 19, 2003 - March 13, 2007

ProvenanceEx coll. William S. Arnett (1939-2020), Atlanta, Georgia.

Status

Not on view

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