Minneapolis Institute of Art
Figure
Chokwe artist
- Date
- early–to–mid 20th century
- Medium
- Wood
- Culture
- Chokwe
- Department
- Arts of Global Africa
- Institution
- Minneapolis Institute of Art
The triangular patterns on the hat and torso of this figure refer symbolically to the protective scales of the pangolin, a small African mammal. Pangolins are associated with the ancestors in Chokwe society because they burrow into termite mounds, considered thresholds between the world of spirits and humans. Democratic Republic of the Congo
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