Minneapolis Institute of Art
Door
Swahili artistLinkedCulture matchlcp-586299763a10
- Date
- mid 19th century
- Medium
- Wood, iron
- Culture
- Swahili
- Department
- Arts of Global Africa
- Institution
- Minneapolis Institute of Art
- Object ID
- 5773
From the Minneapolis Institute of Art record
To own a stone mansion along East Africa’s Swahili coast meant your family was freeborn and in control of global circuits of trade and cultural exchange. The unadorned whiteness of the building’s exterior symbolized the purity of the family; the only ornamentation was the massive carved doorframe in the main entrance—a hint of the wealth and sophistication inside. An “international style” that developed in Zanzibar during the 19th century fused visual styles from mainland Africa, Gujarat, the Red Sea, and the Persian Gulf, all represented on this door. Tanzania
The authoritative record is held by Minneapolis Institute of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.
Get printable QR codesHide QR codes
Open QR codes for this object page and the museum record. They stay collapsed until needed.
Provenance & credit
As published by the source institution. Coverage varies — not every institution's open-data feed includes ownership history.
- Credit line
- The William Hood Dunwoody Fund
Related across collections
Semantically similar works from Minneapolis Institute of Art and other institutions.