Cleveland Museum of Art

Headrest

Date

c. 1910

Medium

wood

Culture

Southern Africa, Zimbabwe or Mozambique, Shona-style blacksmith-carver

Department

African Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Headrests allowed Shona men to protect their elaborate braids. Placed under the neck or chin, frequent contact with hair and hairdressing products darkened its top. Tool marks show how it was smoothed only where the skin would make contact. Linked intimately to their owner, headrests often became burial goods or heirlooms. Recent research suggests Shona headrests symbolized women; small projections on the supports likely reference scarification marks worn by women of marrying age. As only mature men used headrests, it reinforces their female symbolism and women’s societal importance as wives.

The authoritative record is held by Cleveland Museum of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.