Admission is Free | Open Wed–Sun
BACK TO COLLECTION
X2010.16.61 Figurative adze
Object Name: Figurative adze
Artist: Bene-Lulua peoples
Place of Origin: Democratic Republic of Congo
Date/Era: 19th century
Medium/Materials: Carved wood, ferrous metal, glass beads
Credit Line: Fowler Museum at UCLA; Gift of Barbara and Joseph Goldenberg
Accession Number: X2010.16.61
In the Kasai River region in the nineteenth century, it was a widespread custom for elite men to carry intricately carved and ornamented adzes over their shoulders. Embellished adzes like this one were status symbols, not working tools.
Gallery Wall Text, Fowler in Focus: Radiance and Resilience ? Arts of Africa and the Americas from the Goldenberg Collection, 2011
